The philosophy of war is the area of philosophy devoted to examining issues such as the causes of war, the relationship between war and human nature, and the ethics of war. Certain aspects of the philosophy of war overlap with the philosophy of history, political philosophy, international relations and the philosophy of law.
Facts
Central QuestionWhat is war: which entities are entitled to wage it, and what would settle the question of when, if ever, going to war or fighting within one is morally justified? 1 Key DebateContemporary just war theory splits between traditionalists, whose view follows the international law of armed conflict in Michael Walzer's tradition and holds that any combatant may permissibly target any other combatant regardless of the cause each side fights for, and revisionists such as Jeff McMahan, who argue that combatants fighting for an unjust cause do wrong by fighting at all and that civilian immunity and the moral standing of states are less settled than the traditionalist law assumes. 2 Disputed
Key DebateWhether morality survives the outbreak of war at all: some thinkers hold that war necessarily discards moral relations, while others insist that moral strictures, discrimination and proportionality among them, continue to bind combatants once fighting begins. 1 Connections
Associated With
Grotius's De Jure Belli ac Pacis (1625) is the foundational text of just war theory, setting the terms, jus ad bellum and jus in bello, the field still argues within.
Walzer's Just and Unjust Wars (1977) is the field's central modern text, reviving and reworking just war theory against a 20th-century background.
Sources
1. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
War, The Philosophy of, Introduction
Defining what war is requires determining the entities that are allowed to begin and engage in war.
War, The Philosophy of, on war and morality
Once war commences, whatever its merits, philosophers disagree on the role, if any, of morality within war.
View the Source2. War (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and Informationentry: War, section 1 Traditionalists and RevisionistsQuote, entry: War, section 1 Traditionalists and Revisionists
Revisionists question the moral standing of states and the permissibility of national defence, argue for expanded permissions for humanitarian intervention, problematise civilian immunity, and contend that combatants fighting for wrongful aims cannot do anything right, besides lay down their weapons.
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