#613: How Soldiers Die in Battle

#613: How Soldiers Die in Battle

War is about many things: glory, violence, courage, destruction. But at its heart is death. Each side in a conflict tries to kill as many of the enemy as possible, while avoiding being killed themselves.

The way these deaths have played out over thousands of years of warfare has changed not simply based on the way martial technology has changed, but also on the way that the psychological and cultural pressures that have led societies and individual men to fight have changed.

My guest today, Michael Stephenson, is a military historian who explores these evolutions in his book The Last Full Measure: How Soldiers Die in Battle. Today Michael and I discuss the forces that led soldiers to their fate over the centuries, from advancements in weaponry to the expectations of social class. At the beginning of our conversation Michael discusses why he wanted to write this book, and the balance he had to walk in trying to describe the reality of death on the battlefield, without conveying those details in a sensationalistic or titillating manner. We then trace the history of death in war, beginning with its primitive beginnings and working our way to the modern day. Along the way we discuss how gunpowder changed the nature of warfare, the effect that distance has on how heroic a confrontation seems, why artillery is particularly terrifying, what motivates soldiers to fight, and much more.

This is a surprisingly enlightening and humane look at an oft glossed over aspect of the human experience.

Get the show notes at aom.is/lastfullmeasure.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episoder(1159)

Night Visions — Understand and Get More Out of Your Dreams

Night Visions — Understand and Get More Out of Your Dreams

When you really stop to think about it, it’s an astonishing fact that we spend a third of our lives asleep. And part of that time, we’re dreaming. What goes on during this unconscious state that consu...

7 Feb 202442min

Shakespeare on How Leaders Rise, Rule, and Fall

Shakespeare on How Leaders Rise, Rule, and Fall

When people think of the plays of Shakespeare, they tend to think of his comedies and tragedies that spotlight interpersonal dynamics like love and jealousy, pretense and reality. But my guest would s...

5 Feb 202451min

Launch a Million-Dollar Business This Weekend

Launch a Million-Dollar Business This Weekend

Have you always wanted to be an entrepreneur but don’t have an idea for a business? Or have you been sitting on a business idea for years but have never gotten going with it?Well, after listening to t...

31 Jan 202450min

The Case for Minding Your Own Business

The Case for Minding Your Own Business

Attend the graduation of a college senior, and the commencement speech is likely to include a few themes: Do something big. Make a name for yourself. Change the world.My guest is not a fan of this adv...

29 Jan 202441min

The Mundanity of Excellence

The Mundanity of Excellence

Forty years ago, now retired professor of sociology Daniel Chambliss performed a field study in which he observed an elite swim team to figure out what it was that led to excellence in any endeavor.As...

24 Jan 202441min

A Guide to Protecting Yourself Against Unexpected Violence

A Guide to Protecting Yourself Against Unexpected Violence

When Sam Rosenberg was 20 years old and working as a bouncer in a bar, a disgruntled patron pointed a gun directly at his chest and told him: “Now I’m going to kill you.”Sam survived the incident but ...

22 Jan 202456min

Come Alive Again by Having More Fun

Come Alive Again by Having More Fun

Reflect on something for a second: when was the last time you had fun? Are you having trouble remembering, and if you think about it, is it actually kind of hard to even describe what fun is, even?Don...

17 Jan 202449min

An Insider's Guide to the Rise of the American Mafia

An Insider's Guide to the Rise of the American Mafia

You're probably familiar with the American mafia, at least through its portrayal in popular culture. But how did this infamous secret society come to be?Louis Ferrante traces its origins in the first ...

15 Jan 20241h 1min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
mikkels-paskenotter
foreldreradet
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
treningspodden
jakt-og-fiskepodden
rss-bisarr-historie
rss-kull
rss-sunn-okonomi
takk-og-lov-med-anine-kierulf
sinnsyn
fryktlos
rss-kunsten-a-leve
gravid-uke-for-uke
hagespiren-podcast
hverdagspsyken
level-up-med-anniken-binz
rss-var-forste-kaffe