World War I: The Pursuit Of National Interest

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The pursuit of national interest is always in the formula for the calculations of the rational decisions made by a nation. National interest is something each nation is thinking about when they go into war. World War I was the sacrifice of millions of lives to fulfill each nation’s national interest. William Kirby argues that, countries enter war because of their “rational calculations and national interests”. The source points out how the purpose of war is not irrational, it is rationalized by the beliefs of a nation and the benefits of military conflict. Many people would agree with this perspective, the intervention of military in international affairs is justified by a country’s national interest and calculations. Alternatively, some may …show more content…
This idea of nationalism, the idealism presented by the quote, should be supported and embraced by us because of the events in World War I, the national interest and idealism of war within Britain, the idealism and national interest of Germany was the leading cause of World War I, and the contradicting interests between the countries for the control of the Balkans.

The cause of war is ultimately dominated by the ideas of nationalism. Nationalism influenced each country’s national interests and became the rope that pulled Britain into the Great War, this war would lead to towering consequences. The upheld national interest of Britain was the reason they joined this “irrational” war, their treaty signed with Belgium and making sure they would not break their agreement with Belgium, and the propaganda that was spread within the society of Britain. The nationalistic perspective of people within Britain at the time would be the ropes that would cause World War I. The Treaty of London (1839) was the main reason Britain joined the war, because the treaty stated Britain had an
…show more content…
With advanced weaponry and new tactics, this war tested the newly developed war tactics, new weaponry, and advanced machinery. Germany’s national interest was to develop an advanced army that rivaled Great Britain, this would prove to be one of the reasons of the outbreak of a large scale war. The newly unified Germany by Otto von Bismarck meant that they did not have the benefits that the other European powers had, the lack of colonies throughout Europe meant that they would be economically inferior to other countries. Germany’s economic inferiority rallied for the support of using their superior military to show their strength to other European nations. Nationalism became the leading force in the certification of the German identity, and the newly created German superpower wanted to look for “their place in the sun”. Nationalistic ideologies and national self-interest became the reason this large scale war broke out and tore away at Europe. Their decision to go into a “irrational” war was largely based on their “rational calculations” and national interest, and the armistice that lead to the Treaty of Versailles would prove that national interest is always in the mind of nations when they go into war, and when they end the war. At the time, Germany was allied with Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, while the source of the

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