Pacifism as a moral ideal

✍ Scribed by Craig K. Ihara

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 580 KB
• Volume: 22
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-5363
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00136929

✦ Synopsis

In this paper I try to arrive at a clearer understanding of pacifism. In Section 1 I explain why it is essential not to construe the pacifist as someone who believes that it is always wrong to use violence. I postulate that pacifism is better understood as an adherence to a certain kind of moral ideal. In Sections 2 and 3 I propose a list of characteristics which make up the pacifist ideal. In Section 5 I make some suggestions as to why this ideal is worthy of choice. * This paper was originally written for the Gandhi-King Society Meeting held in April of 1984 at the Western Division Meeting of the APA. I am grateful to Greg Rich, Albert Flores, and others who have helped me with their comments.