Raina Petkoff, the young daughter of the Bulgarian Major, is betrothed to Sergius Saranoff who leads a cavalry charge against the Serbian artillery at the battle of Slivnitza. Sergius wins the battle for the simple reason that the Serbian artillery-men are supplied with wrong ammunition. Sergius, Raina's 'soul's hero', immediately becomes 'the hero of Slivnitza', though he wins just by fluke, wins because he ventures in the most idiotic and unprofessional manner.
Raina's worshipful adoration of Sergius and her great excitement about his heroic display in the battle-front suggest a combination of the theme of 'Romanticism of War' and the 'Romanticism of Love'. But the fugitive, a professional soldier in the defeated Serbian artillery, reveals to Raina how foolishly absurd has been Sergius's cavalry charge, a Quixotic adventurism, and he should have been courtmartialled for his absurdly romantic unprofessionalism.
Returning from the battle, Sergius, looks rather disillusioned for not being promoted. What is worse, he begins to flirt with the Petkoff maid Louka behind Raina's back. On the other hand, the figitve soldier, Captain Bluntschli, returns to win the love of Raina.
Shaw's play, 'Arms and the Man' is a wonderful critique of both 'Romanticism of War' and 'Romanticism of Love'. The Shavian protagonist, Bluntschli brings forth a new brand of 'Romanticism' far from Sergius's sentimentalism and showmanship.
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