O. J. Matthijs Jolles
Otto Jolle Matthijs Jolles (1911–1968) performed a major service to
Life
Born in
University of Chicago
Even before the United States entered the war, the University of Chicago had begun casting about for ways to assist the war effort. These efforts grew out of both patriotism and self-interest: the university's leaders were concerned that unless they established Chicago as a center of military learning and research, the university's considerable assets (particularly in cartography and linguistics) might be hauled off in army trucks, "to be returned torn and soiled, if at all." (31) Courses in preinduction military training began as early as September 1940. A formal Institute of Military Studies was created in April 1941. Since Jolles taught military German and German military organization, and On War was considered to be a key to German military behavior, he seemed to be the natural man for the job even though he was not familiar with Clausewitz when he set out. His British father-in-law (a retired professor of classics) provided assistance with the English, although he too had little military background and was new to Clausewitz.
Translation
Jolles quickly developed a good appreciation of On War's significance. His purpose in translating it was to argue that what Clausewitz had to say was much more relevant to the Western Allies than to Germany, and that the Germans' one-sidedly offensive interpretation of On War would prove to be, for them, a fatal error. Jolles's short but penetrating introduction stressed Clausewitz's fundamentally conservative,
Reception
Jolles's translation of Clausewitz is generally considered to convey more of Clausewitz's subtleties than the older Graham translation did and is certainly clearer on some points than the overrated Howard/Paret translation (1976/84). Oddly, Jolles's translation did not catch on, and the Graham translation continued to serve as the basis for most subsequent condensations. This development was most likely a result of financial considerations rather than of the qualities of the respective versions, since the Jolles translation remains under copyright (Random House) whereas the Graham copyright had lapsed.
References
- ^ On War, New York: Random House, 1943. O. J. Matthijs Jolles, translator.
- ISBN 978-3-934565-11-1.
- ISBN 0-19-508383-0.