---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Total war is the most humane in the long…"
description: "\"Total war is the most humane in the long run.\" — C. S. Lewis"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png"
---

#  Total war is the most humane in the long run.

![“Total war is the most humane in the long run.” quote by C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png)

> “Total war is the most humane in the long run.”

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

## About This Quote

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

War that minimizes suffering overall may be considered more humane despite its brutality

**In simple terms:** Humane war is paradoxical

Key Takeaway

Consider long‑term consequences of conflict

Themes

ethics war humanity

Mood

reflective critical

Type

philosophical political

When to use this quote

- policy debates
- military strategy
- historical analysis

Key Concepts

Just war theory utilitarianism

Questions to Reflect On

- Is any war truly humane?
- How to balance short‑term violence with long‑term peace?

A Different Perspective

War still causes immediate harm and moral injury

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Long runs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-runs/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Total war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/total-war/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/)

## Related quotes

> [A society in which conjugal infidelity is tolerated must always be in the long run a society adverse to women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/a-society-in-which-conjugal-infidelity-is-tolerated-must-always-be-in/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [The test for aid to poor nations is therefore whether it makes them capable of being productive. If it fails to do so, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-acheson/the-test-for-aid-to-poor-nations-is-therefore-whether-it-makes-them/)

[Dean Acheson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-acheson/)

> [There is no domestic issue more important to America in the long run than the conservation and proper use of our natural resources, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaylord-nelson/there-is-no-domestic-issue-more-important-to-america-in-the-long-run/)

[Gaylord Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaylord-nelson/)

> [I feel like a big trend is just to model your success off someone else and I don't think that ever works in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mamrie-hart/i-feel-like-a-big-trend-is-just-to-model-your-success-off-someone/)

Mamrie Hart

> [I don't want to be just a straight pop singer. I'm a vocalist and that's what I want to be seen as in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-aguilera/i-don-t-want-to-be-just-a-straight-pop-singer-i-m-a-vocalist-and-that/)

[Christina Aguilera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-aguilera/)

> [There is nothing to be intimidated about - it's just another long run where a few more people show up and they happen to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wess-stafford/there-is-nothing-to-be-intimidated-about-it-s-just-another-long-run/)

[Wess Stafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wess-stafford/)

> [In the long run it makes little difference how cleverly others are deceived; if we are not doing what we are best equipped to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-brande/in-the-long-run-it-makes-little-difference-how-cleverly-others-are/)

[Dorothea Brande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-brande/)

> [There are few husbands whom the wife cannot win in the long run, by patience and love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-of-valois/there-are-few-husbands-whom-the-wife-cannot-win-in-the-long-run-by/)

[Margaret of Valois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-of-valois/)

> [I don't think telling the truth ever gets anyone in trouble in the long run. Maybe the day after, but not in the long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-spurrier/i-don-t-think-telling-the-truth-ever-gets-anyone-in-trouble-in-the/)

[Steve Spurrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-spurrier/)

> [In the long run my observations have convinced me that some men, reasoning preposterously, first establish some conclusion in their minds which, either because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/in-the-long-run-my-observations-have-convinced-me-that-some-men/)

[Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/)

> [Debunking bad science should be constant obligation of the science community, even if it takes time away from serious research or seems to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gardner/debunking-bad-science-should-be-constant-obligation-of-the-science/)

[Martin Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gardner/)

> [As a fighter pilot I know from my own experiences how decisive surprise and luck can be for success, which in the long run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-galland/as-a-fighter-pilot-i-know-from-my-own-experiences-how-decisive/)

[Adolf Galland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-galland/)

> [IMMORAL, adj. Inexpedient. Whatever in the long run and with regard to the greater number of instances men find to be generally inexpedient comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/immoral-adj-inexpedient-whatever-in-the-long-run-and-with-regard-to/)

[Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/)

> [ \[U\]nless oppressed groups stick together, and on alliances of self interest rather than do-goodism; nothing can be accomplished in the long run to dismantle… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shulamith-firestone/u-nless-oppressed-groups-stick-together-and-on-alliances-of-self/)

[Shulamith Firestone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shulamith-firestone/)

> [The human community is evolving... . We can survive anything you care to mention. We are supremely equipped to survive, to adapt and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-human-community-is-evolving-we-can-survive-anything-you-care-to/)

[Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/)

## More by C. S. Lewis

> [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [Either Jesus is the Son of God ; or a madman or worse. But His being just a great teacher? He's not left that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/either-jesus-is-the-son-of-god-or-a-madman-or-worse-but-his-being/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [To every soul, God will look like its first love because He IS its first love. Your place in heaven will seem to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/to-every-soul-god-will-look-like-its-first-love-because-he-is-its/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [Don't you understand anything? Isn't it absolutely essential to keep a fierce Left and a fierce Right, both on their toes and each terrified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/don-t-you-understand-anything-isn-t-it-absolutely-essential-to-keep-a/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [“Really great moral teachers never do introduce new moralities: it is quacks and cranks who do that. As”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/really-great-moral-teachers-never-do-introduce-new-moralities-it-is/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [“When He died in the Wounded World He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/when-he-died-in-the-wounded-world-he-died-not-for-men-but-for-each/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [All I am in private life is a literary critic and historian, that's my job...And I'm prepared to say on that basis if anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/all-i-am-in-private-life-is-a-literary-critic-and-historian-that-s-my/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [If a man is going to write on chemistry, he learns chemistry. The same is true of Christianity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/if-a-man-is-going-to-write-on-chemistry-he-learns-chemistry-the-same/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [The first fact in the history of Christendom is a number of people who say they have seen the Resurrection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/the-first-fact-in-the-history-of-christendom-is-a-number-of-people/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [I#pray because the need flows out of me all the time-walking and sleeping. It does not change # God - it changes me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/i-pray-because-the-need-flows-out-of-me-all-the-time-walking-and/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [Are the gods not just?' 'Oh no, child. What would become us us if they were?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/are-the-gods-not-just-oh-no-child-what-would-become-us-us-if-they-were/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [Love is more than an emotion, it is a decision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/love-is-more-than-an-emotion-it-is-a-decision/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [Ink is the great cure for all human ills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/ink-is-the-great-cure-for-all-human-ills/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [A man may have to die for our country: but no man must, in any exclusive sense, live for his country. He who surrenders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/a-man-may-have-to-die-for-our-country-but-no-man-must-in-any/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [War creates no absolutely new situation: it simply aggravates the permanent human situation so that we can no longer ignore it. Human life has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/war-creates-no-absolutely-new-situation-it-simply-aggravates-the/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

[Explore all 1,190 C. S. Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

## More Humane quotes

> [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/)

[Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/)

> [Yet hold it more humane, more heav'nly, first, By winning words to conquer willing hearts, And make persuasion do the work of fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/yet-hold-it-more-humane-more-heav-nly-first-by-winning-words-to/)

[John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/)

> [“I do not give a damn whether a person is a scientist, a philosopher or a theologian If that person cannot recognize the basic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/i-do-not-give-a-damn-whether-a-person-is-a-scientist-a-philosopher-or/)

[Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/)

> [Let's dream for living in a world where animals are equally respected as humans. It's also high time for us to realise the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chandrababu-vs/let-s-dream-for-living-in-a-world-where-animals-are-equally-respected/)

[Chandrababu VS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chandrababu-vs/)

> [To strive to be perfect is going down the road of self-destruction. To strive to be yourself is going down the road of greatness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-harden-me/to-strive-to-be-perfect-is-going-down-the-road-of-self-destruction-to/)

Isaiah Harden (Me

> [We may observe that, in displaying the praises of any humane, beneficent man, there is one circumstance which never fails to be amply insisted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/we-may-observe-that-in-displaying-the-praises-of-any-humane/)

[David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/)

> [You find as you look around the world that every single bit of progress in humane feeling, every improvement in the criminal law, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/you-find-as-you-look-around-the-world-that-every-single-bit-of/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [I like the Swiss because by and large they are more humane than the other people aming whom I have lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/i-like-the-swiss-because-by-and-large-they-are-more-humane-than-the/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [I don't have a hands-on fondness for animals. I did not grow up bonded to any particular nonhuman animal. I like them and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-pacelle/i-don-t-have-a-hands-on-fondness-for-animals-i-did-not-grow-up-bonded/)

[Wayne Pacelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-pacelle/)

> [The truth is that schools don't really teach anything except how to obey orders. This is a great mystery to me because thousands of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/the-truth-is-that-schools-don-t-really-teach-anything-except-how-to/)

[John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/)

> [What do you regard as most humane? To spare someone shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-do-you-regard-as-most-humane-to-spare-someone-shame/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [If every head of state and every government official spent an hour a day reading poetry we'd live in a much more humane and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/if-every-head-of-state-and-every-government-official-spent-an-hour-a/)

[Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/)

> [Being compassionate towards hapless creatures is the most humane deed one could do to the nature, regardless of the size, shape or looks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/being-compassionate-towards-hapless-creatures-is-the-most-humane-deed/)

[Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/)

> [Capital punishment kills immediately, whereas lifetime imprisonment does so slowly. Which executioner is more humane? The one who kills you in a few minutes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/capital-punishment-kills-immediately-whereas-lifetime-imprisonment/)

[Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/)

> [After many years of thinking, reading and writing and looking, I came to believe that there are two basic, essential values which are indispensable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/after-many-years-of-thinking-reading-and-writing-and-looking-i-came/)

[Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/)

Browse all 454 Humane quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Total war is the most humane in the long run.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "C. S. Lewis"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long-run/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Humane"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long-run/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be1/c-s-lewis-2-132_humane_total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long_2120581.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Total war is the most humane in the long run.” — C. S. Lewis",
                "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": "C. S. Lewis",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Total war is the most humane...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long-run/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/total-war-is-the-most-humane-in-the-long-run/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
