Summary Of Unmaking Men By Kathleen Barry

Unmaking War, Remaking Men by Kathleen Barry

Submitted by: ARPIT SAGAR (OT Code-B51)

Kathleen Barry is a feminist activist and a sociologist. Her first book launched an international movement against human trafficking. In this book namely Unmaking War Remaking Men; she has examined the experiences of the soldiers during their training and combat as well as that of their victims using the concept of empathy. She explains how the lives of these men are made expendable for combat. She also reveals about the various aspects of military training which drives these soldiers into the state of war. These soldiers are trained to kill without even thinking once, due to which they themselves suffer from both trauma and loss of their own souls. She

Bush, Ariel Sharon and Osama bin Laden to show how war is planned which leads to a huge destruction of human life. Kathleen Barry asks about the process of unmaking war by analysing the demilitarized state of Costa Rica. She compares its peace claims with its extremely high rate of violence against women.

In the last chapter she has focussed on the aspect of Remaking men, Reknowing Ourselves. According to her the only way to end war is unmaking masculinity. She further adds that this kind of change is already in process through the men who oppose and say no to combat and transform their lives into a new kind of humanity.

But the work of Kathleen Barry also has some shortcomings like:

- In reality it is very difficult to separate combat ethic from the military’s time immemorial emphasis on face-to-face killing. It might have a strong influence on future of the military culture.

- Military training needs to be intense. But proper care needs to be taken that it should not be devoid of empathy. A certain preconditioning may soften up and facilitate some aspects of military training. The main objective of military is total compliance in service towards the mission. It is less concerned with the psychology of the soldiers. The main job of soldiers as per the Marine Corps is an absolute willingness and obedience to follow all

presidents have repeatedly led the country into many unnecessary wars to test and prove their core masculinity is highly exaggerated. In her treatment of psychopathic leadership, she identifies machismo as the primary trait of leaders. But there have been instances where even women leaders have been instrumental in leading their country to war.

- She also cites masculine characteristics and irrational thinking as the primary reasons behind U.S. interventions all around the globe. But this cannot be the only reason for these wars. In some aspects the military can be said to be an end in itself but the author has failed to address its primary role as servant to the ruling interests.

Though the book has some lacunas but it cannot be denied that Kathleen Barry has done a pioneering work on the concept of empathy which is the most important trait in all human beings. It also needs to be inculcated in the soldiers on the battlefield also so that they can effectively differentiate between right and wrong. The book provides a fresh and broad reaching critique of militarised masculinity. Along with the problems, she has even emphasised on the solutions. For instance, she suggests that killing by a soldier should be thought as the last resort. He should initially focus on negotiation rather than face-to-face killing. This can be imbibed in the training through a proper military training. Such issues if taken seriously can lead to the formation of a peaceful