Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-75dct Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-10T14:46:10.668Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

No peace without injustice: Hobbes and Locke on the ethics of peacemaking

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 June 2012

Jamie Mayerfeld
Jamie Mayerfeld*
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
*
E-mail: jasonm@uw.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Is the demand for justice likelier to cause or to prevent war? Hobbes expresses sympathy for the former view and Locke for the latter. However, they both reason their way toward an intermediate position, symbolized by the impartial judge in Locke's theory and the arbitrator in Hobbes's theory. Peace is possible when we create a process that resolves disputes according to widely intuitive principles of equality and reciprocity. This requires, however, that we refrain from imposing our particular interpretations of justice, and that we tolerate the possibility of unjust outcomes. Hobbes and Locke's reasoning shows us why international institutions are needed to serve as an impartial judge for the resolution of civil and international conflicts. They rebut persistent skepticism about the fitness of international institutions to promote peace and justice. Recent scholarship on ethno-political conflict confirms the wisdom of their analysis.

Keywords

HobbesLockepeacejusticewarinternational institutions
Type
Original Papers
Information
International Theory , Volume 4 , Issue 2 , July 2012 , pp. 269 - 299
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abizadeh, Arash. 2011. “Hobbes on the Causes of War: A Disagreement Theory.” American Political Science Review 105:298–315.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Allan, PierreKeller, Alexis (eds) 2008. What Is a Just Peace? Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Aron, Raymond. 1973. Peace and War, translated by Richard Howard and Annette Baker Fox, abridged by Rémy Inglis Hall. New York: Anchor.Google Scholar
Baier, Annette C. 1987. “Commodious Living.” Synthese 72:157–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baumgold, Deborah. 1988. Hobbes's Political Theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Bercovitch, JacobJackson, Richard 2009. Conflict Resolution in the Twenty-first Century. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boonin-Vail, David. 1994. Hobbes and the Science of Moral Virtue. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Bull, Hedley. 1977. The Anarchical Society. New York: Columbia University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chayes, AbramChayes, Antonia Handler 1995. The New Sovereignty: Compliance with International Regulatory Agreements. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cooper, Julie E. 2010. “Vainglory, Modesty, and Political Agency in the Political Theory of Thomas Hobbes.” Review of Politics 72:241–269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Covell, Charles. 2004. Hobbes, Realism and the Tradition of International Law. UK: Palgrave.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cox, Richard H. 1960. Locke on War and Peace. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
Craig, Campbell. 2008. “The Resurgent Idea of World Government.” Ethics & International Affairs 22:133–142.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cronin, Bruce. 2002. “Creating Stability in the New Europe: The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and the Socialization of Risky States.” Security Studies 12(1):132–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doyle, Michael W. 1997. Ways of War and Peace. New York: Norton.Google Scholar
Doyle, Michael W.Sambanis, Nicholas 2006. Making War and Building Peace. Princeton: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frum, DavidPerle, Richard 2003. An End to Evil. New York: Random.Google Scholar
Grant, Ruth W. 1987. John Locke's Liberalism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grant, Ruth W.Keohane, Robert O. 2005. “Accountability and Abuses of Power in World Politics.” American Political Science Review 99:29–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gurr, Ted Robert. 2000. Peoples Versus States. Washington, DC: US Institute of Peace.Google Scholar
Gurr, Ted Robert. 2007. “Minorities, Nationalist, and Islamists: Managing Communal Conflict in the Twenty-first Century.” In Leashing the Dogs of War: Conflict Management in a Divided World, edited by Chester A. Crocker, Fen Osler Hampson, and Pamela Aall, 131–160. Washington, DC: US Institute of Peace.Google Scholar
Hampton, Jean. 1986. Hobbes and the Social Contract Tradition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Hampton, Jean. 1989. “Hobbesian Reflections on Glory as a Cause of Conflict.” In The Causes of Quarrel: Essays on Peace, War, and Thomas Hobbes, edited by Peter Caws, 78–96. Boston: Beacon.Google Scholar
Hobbes, Thomas. [1640] 1994. The Elements of Law, edited by J.C.A. Gaskin. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Cited in text as Elements, with passages cited by chapter and paragraph number.)Google Scholar
Hobbes, Thomas. [1642] 1998. On the Citizen, translated by Richard Tuck and Michael Silverthorne. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Cited in the text as De Cive, with passages cited by chapter and paragraph number.)Google Scholar
Hobbes, Thomas. [1651] 1994. Leviathan, edited by Edwin Curley. Indianapolis: Hackett. (Cited in text as Lev., with passages cited by chapter and paragraph number.)Google Scholar
Hobbes, Thomas. [1682] 1990. Behemoth, or the Long Parliament, edited by Ferdinand Tönnies, with a new introduction by Stephen Holmes. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kant, Immanuel. [1793] 1983. “To Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch.” In Kant, Perpetual Peace and Other Essays, translated by Ted Humphrey, 107–143. Indianapolis: Hackett.Google Scholar
Kateb, George. 1989. “Hobbes and the Irrationality of Politics.” Political Theory 17:355–391.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kavka, Gregory S. 1986. Hobbesian Moral and Political Theory. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Kelley, Judith. 2004. Ethnic Politics in Europe: The Power of Norms and Incentives. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Kelman, Herbert C. 2007. “Social-Psychological Dimensions of International Conflict.” In Peacemaking in International Conflict, rev. ed., edited by I. William Zartman, 61–107. Washington, DC: US Institute of Peace.Google Scholar
Keohane, Robert O. 1989. International Institutions and State Power. Boulder: Westview.Google Scholar
Kissinger, Henry A. 1957. A World Restored. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.Google Scholar
Lloyd, S.A. 1992. Ideals as Interests in Hobbes's Leviathan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lloyd, S.A. 2001. “Hobbes's Self-effacing Natural Law Theory.” Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 82:285–308.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Locke, John. [1689] 1980. Second Treatise of Government, edited by C.B. Macpherson. Indianapolis: Hackett. (Cited in text as 2nd Tr., with passages cited by section number.)Google Scholar
Locke, John. [1700] 1975. An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, edited by Peter H. Nidditch. Oxford: Clarendon. (Cited in text as Essay, with passages cited by book, chapter, and section number.)Google Scholar
Locke, John. [1706] 1996. “Of the Conduct of the Understanding.” In Locke, Some Thoughts Concerning Education and of the Conduct of the Understanding, edited by Ruth W. Grant and Nathan Tarcov. Indianapolis: Hackett. (Cited in text as Conduct, with passages cited by section number.)Google Scholar
Malcolm, Noel. 2002. “Hobbes's Theory of International Relations.” In Malcolm, Aspects of Hobbes, 432–456. Oxford: Clarendon.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Margalit, Avishai. 2010. On Compromise and Rotten Compromises. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Martel, James R. 2007. Subverting the Leviathan. New York: Columbia University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McClure, Kirstie. 1996. Judging Rights: Lockean Politics and the Limits of Consent. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mearsheimer, John. 1994/95. “The False Premise of International Institutions.” International Security 19:5–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merrills, J.G. 2005. International Dispute Settlement, 4th ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Nagel, Thomas. 2005. “The Problem of Global Justice.” Philosophy and Public Affairs 33:113–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oakeshott, Michael. 1962. Rationalism in Politics. London: Methuen.Google Scholar
Pangle, Thomas L.Ahrensdorf, Peter J. 1999. Justice Among Nations. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas.Google Scholar
Peck, Connie. 1996. The United Nations as a Dispute Settlement System: Improving Mechanisms for the Prevention and Resolution of Conflict. The Hague: Kluwer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peck, Connie. 1998. Sustainable Peace: The Role of the UN and Regional Organizations in Preventing Conflict. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.Google Scholar
Posner, Eric A. 2009. The Perils of Global Legalism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rabkin, Jeremy A. 2005. Law Without Nations? Why Constitutional Government Requires Sovereign States. Princeton: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rathbun, Brain C. 2011. “Before Hegemony: Generalized Trust and the Creation and Design of International Security Organizations.” International Organization 65:243–273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reagan, Ronald. 1986. Address to the Nation on the United States Airstrike against Libya. Accessed May 19, 2012. http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/41486g.htmGoogle Scholar
Roth, Brad R. 2011. Sovereign Equality and Moral Disagreement. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rubenfeld, Jed. 2004. “Unilateralism and Constitutionalism.” New York University Law Review 79:1971–2028.Google Scholar
Ruggie, John Gerard. 1998. Constructing the World Polity. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Simmons, A. John. 1993. On the Edge of Anarchy: Locke, Consent, and the Limits of Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Slomp, Gabriella. 2000. Thomas Hobbes and the Political Philosophy of Glory. New York: St. Martin's.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Strauss, Leo. 1952. The Political Philosophy of Hobbes, translated by Elsa M. Sinclair. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Taylor, A.E. [1938] 1965. The Ethical Doctrine of Hobbes.” In Hobbes Studies, edited by K.C. Brown, 35–55. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.Google Scholar
Thucydides. 1975. Hobbes's Thucydides [Hobbes's Translation of The Peloponnesian War], edited by Richard Schlachter. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.Google Scholar
Tuck, Richard. 1999. The Rights of War and Peace. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Ward, Lee. 2006. “Locke on the Moral Basis of International Relations.” American Journal of Political Science 50:691–705.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Warrender, Howard. 1957. The Political Philosophy of Hobbes. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
Wattles, Jeffrey. 1996. The Golden Rule. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Welch, David A. 1993. Justice and the Genesis of War. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wendt, Alexander. 1999. Social Theory of International Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wendt, Alexander. 2003. “Why a World State Is Inevitable.” European Journal of International Relations 9:491–542.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, Garrath. 2000. “Normatively Demanding Creatures: Hobbes, the Fall, and Individual Responsibility.” Res Publica 6:301–319.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, Michael C. 2005. The Realist Tradition and the Limits of International Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wood, Neal. 1983. The Politics of Locke's Philosophy. Berkeley: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Zartman, I. WilliamTouval, Saadia 1996. “International Mediation in the Post-Cold War Era.” In Managing Global Chaos, edited by Chester A. Crocker and Fen Osler Hampson, with Pamela Aall, 445–461. Washington, DC: US Institute of Peace.Google Scholar