Just War Myth - by Andrew Fiala (Paperback)

About the Book

As war continues to be a primary topic in public debate, Andrew Fiala in The Just War Myth critically examines the concept of just war, arguing that actual wars never live up to the ideals of just war theory. The book provides a historical overview of the just war idea and als...

Book Synopsis

As war continues to be a primary topic in public debate, Andrew Fiala in The Just War Myth critically examines the concept of just war, arguing that actual wars never live up to the ideals of just war theory. The book provides a historical overview of the just war idea and also turns a critical eye on current events, including the idea of preemptive war, the use of torture, and the unreality of the Bush Doctrine.

Review Quotes

Andrew Fiala effectively strips away what he sees as the myths of the just war theory and, without saying that all wars are wrong, argues for a practical pacifism that he believes one is led to by a proper use of just war criteria. His discussion is challenging, eminently readable and laced with insights. It deserves an important place in the growing literature on morality and war.

Andrew Fiala has written a timely and courageous book. It is timely for citizens living in a country that prides itself as going to war with justice on its side, only to stumble time and again into moral conundrums and quagmires. It is courageous in challenging purveyors of the just war doctrine, calling their bluff with an honest discussion of what really happens in war, especially the war in Iraq.

Andrew Fiala pulls back the curtain on the just war myth and challenges the reader to wrestle with the realities of war. This is a sober and intelligent analysis of the moral justifications of war. Fiala has written a thoughtful and practical book, one that will hopefully raise the level of public discourse as we confront the current realities of war.

Andrew Fiala's book engages in a masterful re-examination of an age old tradition-just war theory-in order to shatter the mythic idealism that surrounds it and that shelters us from being able to ask crucial ethical questions about the continual reappearance of war in our lives. Fiala seeks to strip away our fanciful notions of heroic and just violence to show us that the reality of war usually outpaces the capacity of philosophical theories to make sense of its horrors. His conclusion is radical, but it shows how high the stakes are: given the realities of democratic politics, and the kind of destructive capacity available to nations and individuals today, war can hardly ever be justified. This is an important work for anyone concerned with peace and justice today.

Andrew Fiala's timely and open-minded study of the political misuses of just war ideals is must-reading for everyone concerned about war and the responsibilities of leaders and citizens in a democracy. It is indispensable for decision makers in government and the military, and because it is so clearly written and carefully argued, Fiala's book should be used in a wide range of university courses.

This book calls to account the just war theory as a whole and points out the ways in which it fosters, maybe even encourages, our human propensity to moral self-deception. Numerous other writers call into question individual criterion of the just war tradition but Fiala's book is a comprehensive overview. It critiques the assumption that any war can be 'just' by the terms of the criteria and points out the way in which our belief in the possibility of a 'just war' is mythological, like so many others of our beliefs. The just war myth is consoling for many but does not lead us to a moral way of living our lives, individually or communally.

This book will be useful to those interested in thinking more deeply about current events. Recommended.

About the Author

Andrew Fiala is associate professor of philosophy at California State University, Fresno. He is the author of What Would Jesus Really Do? and lives in Fresno, California.