Essay 1: Justifying War

due dates and page requirements

Rough Draft
--Wednesday, 21 February; 4 - 6 pages; two printed versions due at start of class
--Peer response will be conducted at home
--Use the following format when saving the file: "cc2-s07-yourlastname-essay2-rd.doc"
--Draft submitted to openarea folder entitled "essay-2-rd" by classtime
Final Draft
--Wednesday, 28 February; 5 - 7 pages; two printed copies due at the start of class
--Use the following format when saving the file: "cc2-s07-yourlastname-essay2-fd.doc"
--Draft submitted to openarea folder entitled "essay-1-fd" by classtime

printable version of project 1 assignment (.pdf, 10Kb)

texts

Coates, A.J. "The Just War."

Tuchman, Barbara, "A Funeral," "Let the Last Man on High Right Brush the Channel with His Sleeve," "Outbreak," "August 1: Berlin," "August 1: Paris and London," "Ultimatum in Brussels," and "'Home Before the Leaves Fall.'"

Miller, Richard B. from "Introduction: Pluralism and Moral Discourse."

the assignment

Barbara Tuchman begins "Let the Last Man on High Right Brush the Channel with His Sleeve" with a bit of background information meant as foreshadowing:

Count Alfred von Schlieffen, Chief of the German Staff from 1891 to 1906 was, like all Germans officers, schooled in [Karl von] Clausowitz's precept: "The heart of France lies between Brussels and Paris." It was a frustrating axiom because the path it pointed to was forbidden by Belgian neutrality, which Germany, along with the four major European powers, had guaranteed in perpetuity. Believing that war was a certainty and that Germany must enter it under conditions that gave her the most promise of success, Schlieffen determined not to let the Belgian difficulty to stand in Germany's way. (17)

As Tuchman later illustrates, on 4 August 1914 at 8:02 a.m. Moltke also did not "let the Belgian difficulty stand in Germany's way." As a result: World War I. The questions that we must consider, however, are not only about the history of the start of the war, but: Was each country's act of war just? What were each country's concerns when deciding to enter the war? What actions did they take in making their decision? How do those actions or inactions help create an understanding of their military philosophy and war justification?

For this essay, then: Framing your essay with one of the four main theories discussed by Coates, I would like you to choose one World War I country (Germany, France, England, or Belgium), consider what military philosophy they were acting under, and whether or not their actions were just according to jus ad bellum.

As discussed in class, placing a certain country in a specific category of war theory is difficult; and so is coming to a conclusion about their justification for war. When trying to come to a conclusion-yes or no (I would prefer you not say perhaps)-you will have to look specifically at the criteria that make up jus ad bellum: just cause, competent authority, right intention, last resort, relative justice, self defense, proportionality, reasonable hope for success. Please, however, do not focus on more than one or two criteria when coming to your decision (an in-depth discussion of one criteria really should be more than enough . . .).

Rough and Final versions of the essay are to be written double spaced using Microsoft Word, Times New Roman font size 12, and with 1 inch margins all around.