The Ethics of War and Peace by Frowe Helen

Author:Frowe, Helen
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-317-37059-8
Publisher: Taylor & Francis (CAM)

Chapter summary

This chapter investigated what has become a contentious issue amongst just war theorists: the principle of the morality equality of combatants. We outlined Walzer’s two models of combat, upon which combatants either fight freely and consent to be killed or fight through coercion and are permitted to try to kill each other. We looked at McMahan’s critique of this picture and at his claim that we cannot divorce the morality of fighting a war from the morality of the war itself. We considered two arguments that McMahan offers as a rebuttal of the claim that combatants are not morally responsible for unjust wars: the argument from institutional stability and the argument from ignorance. We also explored Steinhoff’s critique of McMahan’s claim that unjust combatants have no legitimate targets.

Questions for discussion

1 In Oops, what should Nation A do?

2 Is McMahan right that the executioner should not kill the convicted man if he correctly believes that he is innocent?

3 Is Pedestrian in Train allowed to throw the grenade? What are the implications of your answer for the permissibility of the civilians’ trying to defend themselves in Pilots?

4 Can a combatant reasonably, but mistakenly, believe that his war is just? If so, does this show that even unjust combatants are justified in fighting?

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