There is so much that must be done in a civilized barbarism like war.

Earhart’s phrasing yokes two opposites—“civilized” and “barbarism”—to stress war’s moral contradiction: modern societies may possess advanced institutions and technology, yet war reduces human conduct to organized brutality. The clause “so much that must be done” suggests the grim, practical burdens war imposes (logistics, nursing, transport, relief work, and the mobilization of labor), implying that even those who oppose war can be compelled into necessary service once conflict begins. The line reads as both indictment and sober acknowledgment: war is reprehensible, but its consequences demand action, coordination, and responsibility from those caught within it.