The Critical Analysis of Barbara Ehrenreich's Works
Why do people battle in wars? In the Ecstasy of war, the author Barbara Ehrenreich states that different wars have led to different theories of why men fight them. As stated in the essay Barbara Ehrenreich believes that a war is a risky method of authorities seeking their collective interests and a way to improve their lives, but it is also an excuse for some individuals to commit violent crimes.
One half of the individuals use wars to gain material needs whereas the other half uses wars to fulfil their deep and irrational psychological needs, very much similar to how King in “Why we crave horror movies” believes that watching a sick horror movie takes care of the anti-civilized emotions within us. Ehrenreich examines some of the strange problems that war and its prevalence present to psychology and sociology. She quotes numerous historical examples some of them being known and some unknown - like Car Von Clausewitz’s appraisal of war as a rational element of politics and Sigmund Freud’s suggestion that there is rather a sort of sub-rational, instinctive drive towards war that often brings it about. Barbara Ehrenreich prompts us to believe that war is not guided by just a warlike instinct. The author believes that going to war is no joke, it takes proper mental and physical preparation. Hence it cannot be aggression or an impulsive instinct alone that prepares a man for a battle. The intense and aggressive emotions fill the body with adrenaline and rage which indeed gives strength for muscular activities.
However, things change when the weapon of choice changes. With long distance weaponry coming in action, such as guns and bows, being cool and calm becomes much more profound as one needs to keep aiming and firing. Determining that combating and killer instincts come naturally is a flawed and backward philosophy. It takes a lot of will power for an individual to leave their everything behind and prepare to put their lives on risk. Often the alteration is accompanied with drugs, alcohol or social pressure of various kinds. Post war rituals were far more intense for instance the men of Maori were restricted from celebrating victory until they were “common” again. The hearts of the slain enemies were roasted and a portion was offered to the war god whereas the remaining portion was eaten by priests to perform the ritual. These post war rituals made the warriors believe that war was more than just a policy. It made them believe war was a holy and sacred realm.
