---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred…"
description: "\"“War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and know that they won’t make it. Hold a drummer boy, cut open from groin to neck, guts spillin..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg"
---

#  War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and…

![“War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and know that they won’t make it. Hold a drummer boy, cut open from groin to neck, guts spilling out as he cries for his mother, telling him it’s going to be all right. Make him believe you. Be his commanding officer, his god. Let him let his…” quote by Alex Avrio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg)

> ““War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and know that they won’t make it. Hold a drummer boy, cut open from groin to neck, guts spilling out as he cries for his mother, telling him it’s going to be all right. Make him believe you. Be his commanding officer, his god. Let him let his guard down and be kind enough to snap his neck. War is butchery. And I am the better butcher.””

Alex Avrio

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

War is brutal, reducing humanity to cruelty; the narrator claims superiority as a butcher.

**In simple terms:** War is cruel and dehumanizing.

Key Takeaway

Reject violent glorification.

Themes

war violence humanity morality power

Mood

critical grim

Type

Art:1 Peace:1 War:1 War Butchery:1 Drummer Boy:1 Butchery Better:1 Better Butcher:1 Cries Mother:1

When to use this quote

- military ethics
- peace activism
- historical analysis

Key Concepts

butchery psychology of war authority

Questions to Reflect On

- What moral lines are crossed in war?
- How does power corrupt perception?

A Different Perspective

Violence can be rationalized.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/)

## Related quotes

> [“I have heard ballads of great battles, and poems about the beauty of a charge and the grace of a leader. But I did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippa-gregory/i-have-heard-ballads-of-great-battles-and-poems-about-the-beauty-of-a/)

[Philippa Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philippa-gregory/)

> [“Better the butcher than the meat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/better-the-butcher-than-the-meat/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“She is of the north. She deserves better than a butcher.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/she-is-of-the-north-she-deserves-better-than-a-butcher/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“Are you gonna sit back there and whack off or are you gonna give us a count? It's me and you to start, drummer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shari-copell/are-you-gonna-sit-back-there-and-whack-off-or-are-you-gonna-give-us-a/)

Shari Copell

> [My dad still hasn't heard 'I Love My Dad,' and I'm sure he'll say something like, 'It's good, but I love your version of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kozelek/my-dad-still-hasn-t-heard-i-love-my-dad-and-i-m-sure-he-ll-say/)

[Mark Kozelek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kozelek/)

> [At our house, we'd always open presents with our Christmas records playing. 'Little Drummer Boy' was one of my favorites when I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stokes-mitchell/at-our-house-we-d-always-open-presents-with-our-christmas-records/)

[Brian Stokes Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stokes-mitchell/)

> [You might be the "little drummer boy," worried that what you have to say isn't worthy. Everyone has something to contribute, especially if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-brogan/you-might-be-the-little-drummer-boy-worried-that-what-you-have-to-say/)

[Chris Brogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-brogan/)

> [The Little Drummer Boy was playing in the background for what seemed like the third time in a row. I fought off an urge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-reinhardt/the-little-drummer-boy-was-playing-in-the-background-for-what-seemed/)

[Dana Reinhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-reinhardt/)

> [“Love at first sight. I don't believe in that shit. Weird, huh? Yeah, but the Little Drummer Boy has been fucked over too many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-m-stunich/love-at-first-sight-i-don-t-believe-in-that-shit-weird-huh-yeah-but/)

[C.M. Stunich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-m-stunich/)

> [“Pa-rump, pa-rump, pa-rump. He's the Little Drummer Boy on speed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-adams/pa-rump-pa-rump-pa-rump-he-s-the-little-drummer-boy-on-speed/)

[Alex Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-adams/)

> [“Achieving mental harmony is one of the greatest goals and experiences in life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kambiz-mostofizadeh/achieving-mental-harmony-is-one-of-the-greatest-goals-and-experiences/)

[Kambiz Mostofizadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kambiz-mostofizadeh/)

> [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Peace requires a discipline more iron than war. - Easter, 1939 ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-j-turner/peace-requires-a-discipline-more-iron-than-war-easter-1939/)

W.J. Turner

> [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/)

[Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/)

> [Just understand that the good that you want is already here. All you have to do is get in harmony with it. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/just-understand-that-the-good-that-you-want-is-already-here-all-you/)

[Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/)

## More by Alex Avrio

> [“When you fall into the gutter you tell yourself that you can climb out. Then you notice that you’re covered in filth but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-avrio/when-you-fall-into-the-gutter-you-tell-yourself-that-you-can-climb/)

Alex Avrio

Explore all 2 Alex Avrio quotes

## More Art quotes

> [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/)

[Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/)

[Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/)

> [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/)

Taf Teh

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/)

[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/)

> [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/)

[Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/)

[Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and know that they won’t make it. Hold a drummer boy, cut open from groin to neck, guts spilling out as he cries for his mother, telling him it’s going to be all right. Make him believe you. Be his commanding officer, his god. Let him let his guard down and be kind enough to snap his neck. War is butchery. And I am the better butcher.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alex Avrio"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-avrio/war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men-over-a-hill-and-know-that/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-avrio/war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men-over-a-hill-and-know-that/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6e/alex-avrio-104124_art_war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men_1633534.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“War is not an art, boy. Send a hundred men over a hill and know that they won’t make it. Hold a drummer boy…” — Alex Avrio",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Alex Avrio",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-avrio/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“War is not an art, boy....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-avrio/war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men-over-a-hill-and-know-that/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-avrio/war-is-not-an-art-boy-send-a-hundred-men-over-a-hill-and-know-that/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
