Session 22: War of the Worlds

“War is a matter of vital importance to the state; the province of life or death; the road to survival or ruin. It is mandatory that it be thoroughly studied.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War. 

Strictly following the great military general’s advice, Jack Levy published his piece of writing in 2002 named, ‘War and Peace’. The article is basically a comprehensive review of the literature of the causes of wars and conditions which eventually lead to peace. Levy has analyzed the disparities between war and peace in great depth and through multiple lenses.  

The realist school supports Thomas Hobbes’ view that human nature is inherently evil. The fundamental assumption in this theoretical framework is that the nature of states is anarchic and therefore, every state strives to maximize its power. The evil human nature of individuals coupled with the greed of power maximization makes the international system more susceptible to war. However, recently realism has branched into further schools of thought like offensive and defensive realism. Advocates of both these schools have differences in explaining the causes of war but the fundamental assumption remains the same i.e. anarchic structure of international system.  

The author then moves on to view this from a liberalist perspective. Liberalists propose that since states are dependent on each other economically for survival, this economic interdependence decreases chances of war. Relations between states are improved greatly through trade and this leads to peace and harmony. Even states would avoid having wars with each other because this would not only lead to a great loss of lives and infrastructure but also incur huge amounts of costs, which the states may not be able to bear. Thus, states promote peace through economic integration to mutually benefit from trade.

  

The question of war and peace is a broad one. Jack Levy has approached this topic from multiple perspectives. Reading and then writing about realism and liberalism all over again made me wonder if we are moving in circles. This reading has brought us back to the beginning, where we have to study what causes war in the first place and peace may eventually prevail. However, in order to truly grasp the essence of the filed we have to go back to the root of the situation and trace its history. Jack Levy has successfully managed to shift the focus towards to the nature of war, which will eventually help us comprehend the constant recurrence and persistent pattern of war and peace through the ages.