Summary Of Why The West Has Won By Victor Hanson

“Why the West Has Won” by Victor Hanson was an enjoyable read, but sometimes hard to understand. It was a little hard to understand because of the many words I didn’t know the meaning of. After looking up these words and finishing the article, it is clear that Hanson’s argument is that he thinks the west was great at warfare. He tells us in the article that they are great at warfare because of the certain way they fight. Hanson uses compelling evidence to back up his main argument throughout the entire article. Early in the reading he talks about the Ten Thousand and how they were great at warfare. He is amazed by the army’s flexibility and how they can adapt to each battle. By being so flexible and adaptable the army marched through many armies and villages with a goal to get back home. They would always be adapting to the new technology and surroundings. By using this ‘shock battle’ tactic they army would catch opposing armies off guard. Hanson admires the way the west fought, he talks about the Hellenic characteristics the army had, and how they fought with a sense of personal freedom and superior discipline. Hanson states that another reason the west was so successful was because they rarely be shackled by tradition, religion, or ethics. Hanson continues to talk about how great the western warfare is and how annihilation is another

He talks about how the west may have been lucky because of their natural resources and geography. These gave them advantages that others did not have. He could have said that they were smart for selecting such a great place to live. He gets away from the west being the west and talks about how they owe their success to some of the great leaders from different times like, alexander the great. I think this kind of crosses his thesis of how the west was different from other armies that fought back