John Steinbeck, American writer, “All war is a symptom of man’s failure as a thinking animal”

The United States appears to be on the precipice of yet another armed conflict in the Middle East with President Donald Trump ordering the deployment of the largest military show of force to the region in decades. The stated reason for the massive buildup is to pressure Tehran into making “meaningful” concessions on their nuclear program or face devastating strikes.

However, some like the scholar Scott Galloway feel that the U.S. bombing of the Islamic Republic is a forgone conclusion because of a thorny issue at home for Trump that won’t go quietly into the night, the scandal from the Epstein files.

“All war is a symptom of man’s failure as a thinking animal”

John Steinbeck (1902 – 1968), is one of the most renowned American writers and was given the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature “for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception.” He is perhaps best known for his works ‘Of Mice and Men’ and ‘The Grapes of Wrath’, both set in California during the Great Depression and dealing with the plight of the common person in the face of inequality.

However, another one of the prolific writer’s books, ‘Once There Was a War’, was a collection of articles he wrote while working as a war correspondent for the New York Herald Tribune from June to December 1943. The stories he shared with readers weren’t about the actual battles or interviews with those who were directing military strategy and national policy.

Instead, much like the Pulitzer Prize-winner’s novels, he focused on the experiences of the ordinary people in the thick of the conflict. Steinbeck shared the stories of those on the frontlines as well as those in the rear who were providing support in logistics and maintenance.

It’s from this book that the above quote “all war is a symptom of man’s failure as a thinking animal,” comes. Steinbeck avoided glorifying war, his writings on what he experienced in WWII often focused on the cost to the humans involved from the violence.

Not only was armed conflict tragic failure to use empathy and find common ground to avoid it for the writer, but it failed to resolve the root causes. Thus, it was pointless and meant the future only held in store more violence.

“Try to understand men,” Steinbeck also said. “If you understand each other you will be kind to each other. Knowing a man well never leads to hate and almost always leads to love.”

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