Famous Quotes explained: « In war, it is the war of men; in peace, it is the war of ideas. », Fragments, Hugo, 1885.

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Famous Quotes explained: « In war, it is the war of men; in peace, it is the war of ideas. », Fragments, Hugo, 1885.

This quote by Victor Hugo is taken from a posthumous collection of thoughts, aphorisms, and unfinished writings. It is not surprising that the humanist writer and politician would reflect on war.

The quote uses parallelism: War/Peace, it is war repeated. The same syntactic construction is found in both parts of the sentence, giving effectiveness to the idea expressed and presenting it as a universal truth.

War is the war of men describes the cruel and factual reality of war. The first part of the sentence evokes battles in which human beings fight, tear each other apart, and massacre one another. What is important in war is this violence between human beings; this is the tragedy of war.

On the other hand, peace is the war of ideas explains that to make peace, it is necessary to debate, confront different points of view, and reconcile the interests of the warring parties. When real combat stops, the battles of ideas begin. This conflict seems less serious. First of all, it does not involve deaths. Secondly, it is hopeful, and it should lead to the end of the war.

The war of ideas seems more noble than the war of men, and above all, more beneficial!

War is the war of men; peace is the war of ideas.

Links to Another quotes explained: Famous quotes explained: « Education is given by the family; instruction is owed by the state. », Victor Hugo, Words and deeds, 1876. Famous Quotes explained: « One person is missing, and everything is depopulated. » Méditations poétiques, « L’Isolement », Lamartine, 1820. Famous quotes explained: « To love is to know how to say ‘I love you’ without speaking. » Victor Hugo

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