Philosophy of War [2623]

General Information

• Credits: 3 ECTS
• Prerequisites: Bachelor's or Licence level (or equivalent); proficiency in French
• Learning format: asynchronous distance learning – 100% e-learning
• Language of instruction: French
• Course access: available at any time of year
• Disability liaison officer: Cécile Boucherle

Course Overview

This course offers a philosophical reflection on war, understood as a moral, religious, legal, and political phenomenon. After examining its definition, causes, and value, it traces the various ways in which philosophers have sought to understand and regulate the violence of war. From antiquity to the contemporary era, it considers, in particular, the thought of Plato, Aristotle, Sun Tzu, Machiavelli, Grotius, Clausewitz, and Aron. The course successively explores the moral glorification or condemnation of war, its religious justification, its regulation through law, and its use as a political instrument. It also shows how the historical transformations of warfare—from wars between states and world wars to nuclear warfare, guerrilla warfare, and terrorism—require philosophical thought to be constantly renewed. Finally, it asks whether war may be regarded as an irreducible feature of human existence. 

Course Objectives

This course enables you to:

• Define war as a philosophical object through its vocabulary — werra, polemos, bellum — and through Kenneth Waltz's three levels of causation.
• Analyse the relationship between war and morality, from the ancient critique of martial virtues to deontological and consequentialist pacifisms.
• Compare religious doctrines of war: the just war from Augustine to Vitoria, and jihad in the Medinan surahs.
• Situate the major legal doctrines of war — Grotius, Rousseau, Kant, Schmitt, Walzer — and the question of jus post bellum.
• Discuss war as a political and anthropological fact, from Hegel and Clausewitz to Raymond Aron and nuclear deterrence.

Course Competencies

This course is linked to the following competency:

• Evaluate the ethical and practical conditions of a humanitarian intervention or of a post-conflict transition

Course Outline

Section 1: War and Morality

Section 2: War and Religion

Section 3: War and Law

Section 4: War, Politics, and Philosophy

Assessment Methods 

Course assessment is based on:

• tracking and completion of the course and of all learning activities. These activities, designed as essential practice and learning exercises, may be completed multiple times and are not factored into the final grade,
• the final assessment quiz, which constitutes the graded evaluation.

Learning Format

The course is taught entirely online via the MyDomuni platform, accessible 24/7.
Learning resources include:

• written course materials;
• supplementary documents and, depending on the content, video resources;
• interactive learning activities (quizzes, exercises);
• a discussion forum with the course instructor and fellow participants.

Prerequisites

This course is open to anyone holding a Bachelor's degree or Licence (or an equivalent qualification) in law, the humanities, social sciences, theology, or a related field connected to human rights, or with significant personal or academic experience related to the topics covered.

A good command of written French is recommended to facilitate understanding of the content and participation in the activities offered.

Accessibility

The course is accessible at any time, from any internet-connected device, via the MyDomuni platform.
For students with disabilities, specific support can be arranged upon request to ensure equitable access to course content and activities.

Disability liaison officer: cecile.boucherle@domuni.eu.

Selective Bibliography

• Carl von Clausewitz, On War, edited and translated by Michael Howard and Peter Paret, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1984.
• Raymond Aron, Clausewitz: Philosopher of War, translated by Christine Booker and Norman Stone, London, Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1983.
• Michael Walzer, Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument with Historical Illustrations, 4th ed., New York, Basic Books, 2006.
• Immanuel Kant, Toward Perpetual Peace and Other Writings on Politics, Peace, and History, edited by Pauline Kleingeld, translated by David L. Colclasure, New Haven, Yale University Press, 2006.
• René Girard, Battling to the End: Conversations with Benoît Chantre, translated by Mary Baker, East Lansing, Michigan State University Press, 2010.