Written in 1795, Immanuel Kant’s essay ‘Toward a Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch’ is a key text in discussions surrounding war, peace, and cosmopolitan ideals. Kant’s ideas of constitution, federation of free states and the cosmopolitan rights of individuals have formed the building blocks of many strategies for peace enacted since then, although his advice is occasionally ignored to this day. Scholars have interpreted Kant’s work in many ways, with some ideas being labeled as liberal, and other ideas being labeled as realist. Kant’s methods for achieving perpetual peace can be contradictory and ambiguous, which have contributed to ineffectiveness in implementing his ideas. Kant conceived his work as a method to create a more moral
…show more content…
Kant perceives war as the state of nature between nations, and thus the attainment of perpetual peace is the only significant marker of human progress. Reason and logic are highly valued by Kant, and he suggests that war is incompatible with reason, and therefore perpetual peace is a crucial goal. “Reason, as the ultimate source of ethical legislation, on the one hand, levels an absolute condemnation against war and, on the other hand, establishes peace as a pressing obligation” (Mahmoudi, 2008). Violence between states is economically and socially disastrous, and cannot lead to an improvement of the human experience, as war does not encourage peace, only more …show more content…
Significantly more countries have representative governments, than during Kant’s lifetime, and there have been multiple attempts at creating a united world federation, including the United Nations and the League of Nations. Greater technology and travel have increased universal hospitality between most cultures and groups, although some animosity remains. Modern governments still often attempt to intervene within other countries, which still sometimes leads to war, as has been seen in the middle east. Although perpetual peace has not been achieved, and significant military conflicts are still occurring, we are working towards achieving peace, as was Kant’s
Kant perceives war as the state of nature between nations, and thus the attainment of perpetual peace is the only significant marker of human progress. Reason and logic are highly valued by Kant, and he suggests that war is incompatible with reason, and therefore perpetual peace is a crucial goal. “Reason, as the ultimate source of ethical legislation, on the one hand, levels an absolute condemnation against war and, on the other hand, establishes peace as a pressing obligation” (Mahmoudi, 2008). Violence between states is economically and socially disastrous, and cannot lead to an improvement of the human experience, as war does not encourage peace, only more …show more content…
Significantly more countries have representative governments, than during Kant’s lifetime, and there have been multiple attempts at creating a united world federation, including the United Nations and the League of Nations. Greater technology and travel have increased universal hospitality between most cultures and groups, although some animosity remains. Modern governments still often attempt to intervene within other countries, which still sometimes leads to war, as has been seen in the middle east. Although perpetual peace has not been achieved, and significant military conflicts are still occurring, we are working towards achieving peace, as was Kant’s