Bluntschli’s character. Compare the character of the Bluntschli with that of Sergius.

One of the most notable contributions of Shaw to the modern drama lies in the exceptional variety and vividness of his characters that he provides. In Arms and the Man, Shaw presents Bluntschli and Sergius, the protagonists who stand as a contrast antipodal related to each other. Bluntschli is projected as superior to Sergius in point of the realistic approach to life and Sergius is only a ridiculous foil to the professional competence of Bluntschli.

As soldiers, the two are poles asunder. Sergius looks upon war through the mist of romance and like Othello and Tamburlaine war is a thing of glory, an opportunity for displaying heroism to him.  He is a ridiculous figure, but finally in the end he learnt to his bitter cost, the supreme lesson that “soldiering is the coward’s art of attacking mercilessly when one strong and keeping out of harm’s way when one is weak.” Thus Sergius is presented as a sentimental fool holding the illusory aspects of life as reality.

Bluntschli, on the other hand is a character who from the first appearance on the stage manifests himself to the most un-soldierly soldier. To him war is no amusement, not a thing to gloat over but a necessary evil and he does not rush into the mouth of cannon for bubble reputation but is guided by the instinct of self- preservation like all other men. He frankly admits that he carries chocolates as ration in place of bullets. He quickly gobbles up some chocolates which Raina offers him, licking the remains from his fingers and thus becomes Raina’s “chocolate cream soldier”.

 As lovers too, Bluntschli and Sergius are anti- thetical. Sergius is the embodiment of the romantically tender and faithful love while Bluntschli is too practical. Sergius considers himself to be the “apostle of higher love” as he calls him. Whereas Bluntschli is a realist in love and throughout the play the un- romantic Bluntschli makes no such pretensions to love and appears to be too prosaic in all spheres of life.

Thus the common sense of Bluntschli of Bluntschli of Bluntschli outdoes and outshines Sergius both in love and war and proves the epitome of the complete human being , an architect of a new message about Arms and the Man.