War and Self Defence in Contemporary Just War Theory: A Philosophical Critique of Collectivist Account

Abstract

The nature and degree of the link between self-defense and war are sources of great debate in modern just war theory. The thinkers who are called collectivists contend that war should be seen as a relationship between collectives rather than between individuals. As a result, we must see soldiers' activities as being performed on behalf of the group as a whole. As a result, we are unable to evaluate their behaviours using the same criteria that we use for individual behaviour. Reductive individualists, on the opposite side, contend that the laws controlling killing in war may be reduced to the laws governing killing in everyday life and that these laws are based on people's rights and obligations. According to the individualist perspective, killing does not change a person's moral character only because it is done often or for political reasons. To support the individualist explanation of self-defense and war, I will provide a philosophical criticism of the collectivist account in this essay. This will be done in agreement with Jeff McMahan's opinions and with reference to him.