The Anatomy of Peace

The Anatomy of Peace (OCLC 47288) was a book by Emery Reves, first published in 1946, which expressed the world federalist sentiments shared by Albert Einstein and many others in the late 1940s, in the period immediately following World War II.

The Anatomy of Peace - Resolving the Heart of Conflict, by Arbinger Institute ISBN 978-1-57675-334-7 This is a different book from the one above, and they should not be confused.

The Anatomy of Peace, published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers, reminds us that war and conflicts in life at home, at work, and in the world, are often our own making. In this business fable, we read a moving story of struggling parents and children facing and coping with problems that consume their lives. Amidst this turmoil, they become friends with their once-bitter enemies.

This business fable tells us that conflicts are in our minds. This fable tells us the moving story of an Arab and a Jew, each of whom had lost their fathers in the hands of the other’s ethnic cousins. They come together to foster friendship and cooperation not only between their own families, but also among warring parents and children. The Anatomy of Peace is a business fable with directions to lead a harmonious life in the face of adversity and conflicts.

Influence

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra performed a symphony by Marvin Hamlisch called The Anatomy of Peace on 19 November 1991. The composer noted[1]:

I decided that Reves's call for one law for us all could be defined by a simple, clear, plaintive theme, and that the orchestra would represent all the nations of the world and their different rules of law. The suite begins with the nations of the world in loud, cacophonous uproar. Suddenly, a solo flute introduces the "one Law" theme, beckoning to us all; one law bringing us all together. But each section of the orchestra (our world) initially resists the call, since old habits are hard to break. The brass and the woodwinds are first to display their dislike of this new idea. But the flute acts as a magnet and slowly its pull (its logic) is felt, first by the woodwinds. When the theme returns, it is not alone. The strings, a big part of our world, must now be convinced, and finally they are. Our theme is now given words, first introduced by a solo child, and then sung again by a children's chorus. Slowly the irresistibility of the idea begins to weave a spell on the orchestra and the penultimate section of the piece is a contemplative one, as the world thinks about what the new world order would be. Finally, Reves's dream is musically realized, as the entire orchestra accepts the "one Law" concept.