Wounding the World

Wars are frequently justified 'in our name'. Militarist values and practices co-opt us, permeating our language, invading our dream space, entertaining us at the movies or in front of game consoles. Our taxes pay for those war machines. Our loved ones are killed and maimed.

With killing now an integral part of the entertainment industry in video games and Hollywood films, war has become mainstream.

With the 100th anniversary of the declaration of the First World War, has come a deluge of books, documentaries, feature films and radio programmes. We will hear a great deal about the horror of the battlefield. Bourke acknowledges wider truths: war is unending and violence is deeply entrenched in our society. But it doesn't have to be this way. This book equips readers with an understanding of the history, culture and politics of warfare in order to interrogate and resist an increasingly violent world.

Joanna Bourke is a professor of history at Birkbeck College in London. Her book An Intimate History of Killing received critical acclaim, winning the Wolfson History Prize.

' Wounding the World is essential reading . . . Bourke's argument is that we have little alternative but to wake up and resist the terrible power of militarisation - or lose our humanity in the process. Be convinced' Observer Military practices, technologies, games, language, entertainment and symbols have invaded our everyday lives. A century after the First World War, it is essential we know what forces have brought us to this point in the history of violence. Award-winning historian Joanna Bourke identifies and tackles the insidious militarisation of British and American life and explores its terrifying consequences. She asks why military practices and war-play are so pervasive. What is the relationship between everyday violence and weapon research? Only through understanding the history, science and ethics of weaponry can we begin to talk about what can be done. This brave and passionate book proposes some real solutions to stop us wounding the world.

Wars are frequently justified 'in our name'. Militarist values and practices co-opt us, permeating our language, invading our dream space, entertaining us at the movies or in front of game consoles. Our taxes pay for those war machines. Our loved ones are killed and maimed.With killing now an integral part of the entertainment industry in video games and Hollywood films, war has become mainstream.With the 100th anniversary of the declaration of the First World War, has come a deluge of books, documentaries, feature films and radio programmes. We will hear a great deal about the horror of the battlefield. Bourke acknowledges wider truths: war is unending and violence is deeply entrenched in our society. But it doesn't have to be this way. This book equips readers with an understanding of the history, culture and politics of warfare in order to interrogate and resist an increasingly violent world.

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