URL study guide

https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/S_PEV

Course Objective

The aim of this course is to introduce students to the main philosophical and ethical concepts on violence and non-violence, war and peace (-building), and the phenomenon of terrorism – in the context of a globalized world. Special attention will be given to religiously motivated violence and the potential role of religion in peace-building, including a postcolonial lens. Learning Objectives When finalizing the course, students will have knowledge and understanding ofThe prospects and problems of the main political-philosophical and ethical concepts of war and peace;The prospects and problems of violent and non-violent peacebuilding concepts;The historical, cultural and economic contexts in which certain approaches concerning war and peace have emerged and have been applied;The prospects and problems of religion as one of the main contributors to violence (terrorism) as well as to non-violent peace (-building) in a globalized world.Becoming aware of the continued challenges of colonial mindsets and structures.

Course Content

Philosophy Part As far as we go back in history, we find traces of human violence. Does this mean that human nature is violent per se? Or has violence other sources and causes? This type of questions has occupied philosophers, especially in modern times, the times that are characterized both by a continuation of the high level of violence that we encounter throughout human history and by an increasing moral denouncement of violence. So, in philosophy, key questions that are raised with increasing intensity are: what is violence, how does it occur and can we overcome violence and enter into a state of non-violence or even ‘eternal peace’? Is violence ‘selective’, i.e. does it affect certain groups more than others, e.g. women? There is also an increasing focus on the aftermath of conflict and oppression in history. How can we deal with a violent past? How can ‘restorative justice’ ever be just? Ethics Part For centuries, in the Western World the concepts of war and peace have been developed and discussed in the field of philosophy linked to theology, due to the fact of the corpus christianum (the medieval concept of a unity of church and state). The just-war-theory is the predominant model of reasoning in this tradition, challenged only by some religious minorities who pronounced non-violence as the moral obligation within Christian ethics. During the Enlightenment period, this societal unity of political and religious powers begins to fall apart, due to new ways of thinking and reasoning. This has lead the (European) societies into violent (freedom-) struggles within, resulting in a clear separation of “church and state”. This paved the way to secular states on the one hand and religious plurality on the other. Yet, it also supported colonization. Current phenomena like forms of terrorism, “New Wars” as well as the “Renaissance of the Just War theory” demonstrate, that moral reasoning of religious communities still plays a major role in orienting people of faith – and implicitly also people of no faith – in their ethical judgements. This is not only true for some ethical dilemmas (such as collective self-defense, emergency assistance for populations at risk or violent struggles for political liberty and independence) but also for concepts of non-violent resistance, peace-building, and reconciliation (see Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, World Council of Churches etc.). – In times of economic globalization, cultural diversity, and religious plurality the discourse on war, (non-) violence and peace (-building) finds itself in rapidly changing contexts – and new forums of analysis and engagement, including postcolonial studies.

Teaching Methods

Seminar-style with presentations and discussions. Attendance mandatory (80%)

Method of Assessment

For the Ethics part: Group assignments and final exam (50%) For the Philosophy part: Reading Reports and final exam (50%)

Literature

The Ashgate Research Companion to Religion and Conflict Resolution, ed. by Lee Marsden (2012). Additional articles will be provided.

Target Audience

Bachelor students in the minor Peace and Conflict Studies. The course is also open as an elective course.

Additional Information

Week 1-3 PHILOSOPHY (Buijs) Week 4-6 ETHICS (Enns & Pacheco Lozano)
Academic year1/09/2431/08/25
Course level6.00 EC

Language of Tuition

  • English

Study type

  • Master
  • Bachelor