Ethics of Peace, War, and Defense (PHIL 272/001)

In Phil 272 we will study the ethics of war with a special focus on Just War Theory (JWT). The class will revolve around the distinct interpretations of J W T offered in Michael Walzer’s “Just and Unjust Wars” and Brian Orend’s “The Morality of War”. These particular interpretations of JWT are of interest because of their foundations in social contract theory and rights theory, respectively. We will examine the implications of these different foundational ideas for such topics as the justice of starting, prosecuting, and ending of a war, as well as the permissibility of civil war and interventions. Moreover, we will also be applying these theories to actual recent events, such as the US wars in both Iraq and Afganistan, and, additionally, the uprisings in Egypt and Libya.

Jamaal Pitt’s webpage