"The introduction explains why we should study war. As for how to do this, we turn to Alexander the Great's mentor, Aristotle, who in Posterior Analytics, asserts that understanding something's nature requires that we identify its cause or "why." In Physics and Metaphysics, he says that this "why" can be expressed as four "causes:" (1) "material" (substance); (2) "formal" (appearance); (3) "efficient" (source); and (4) "final" (purpose). For example, a statue's material cause is bronze; its formal cause is the shape; its efficient cause is the artisan and her technique; and its final cause is the satisfaction inspired by the work of art. The "why" of a statue, therefore, is be-"cause" the artisan (efficient) molded it from bronze (material) into a shape (formal) that elicits admiration (final).2 Applying this technique to war yields a material cause (the "stuff" of war), war's physical components; formal cause (war's form), force arrangement and interactions informed by tactics and doctrine; efficient cause (generally, humanity; specifically, warriors), the author of war within whom dwells the will to fight; and lastly, a final cause (the war's purpose), what war seeks to achieve"-- Provided by publisher.
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