Arms and the Man is a comedy by George Bernard Shaw, whose title comes from the opening words of Virgil's Aeneid, in Latin: Arma virumque cano ("Of arms and the man I sing").

Raina Petkoff dreams of love, heroism, and noble soldiers. When a weary and pragmatic Swiss mercenary, Captain Bluntschli, stumbles into her bedroom after fleeing battle, her romantic illusions begin to crumble. Unlike her dashing fiancé, the celebrated war hero Sergius, Bluntschli sees war for what it truly is—chaotic, absurd, and ruled by luck rather than bravery. As deception, irony, and unexpected attraction unfold, Raina must decide between the fantasy of gallant warfare and the stark reality of human nature. A sharp and witty comedy that satirizes both the romantic idealization of war and the foolishness of blind hero worship, Arms and the Man remains one of George Bernard Shaw’s most entertaining and thought-provoking plays.