Assessing Jean Lartéguy's The Centurions for the past, present, and future of irregular warfare

Jean Lart & eacute;guy's The Centurions (1960) became a must-read among coalition forces during the war on terror. The novel follows a French airborne battalion as it counters insurgencies in Vietnam and Algeria. It addresses the strategic and tactical issues associated with counterinsurgency as well as the psychological costs. What lessons were drawn from Lart & eacute;guy, and what does the novel tell us for the future? In addition to a close reading of the text, I engage in a genealogical analysis of the novel's citations to determine how informal forms of doctrine filter through organizational cultures like the military and subtly guide policy.