Kant, Toward Perpetual Peace
Study Questions:
What is the difference between a truce and peace and which of these two is Kant arguing in favor of?
What actions do Kant's proposed rules of war prohibit?
What are the rules of war intended to avoid?
Which is the natural state, war or peace? (II. Introduction)
Does ‘peace' mean avoiding war only, or does it mean more than that? Explain. (II. Introduction)
What are the three principles of a republican constitution? (First Definitive Article)
Why do states with republican constitutions have a better chance of achieving true peace than states without republican constitutions? (First Definitive Article)
Why should a league or federation of nations NOT be thought of as a single world government in which all nations are members? (Second Definitive Article)
Kant compares the lawless freedom of savages to the lawless freedom of so-called civilized states that wage wars of conquest and national self-interest against other states. How, according to Kant, are so-called civilized states who exercise this lawless freedom even worse than so-called savages who exercise lawless freedom? (Second Definitive Article)
What is the difference between a league of peace and a treaty of peace? (Second Definitive Article)
Does the league of peace that Kant is proposing exercise control over the state? If not, what DOES it do?
What is hospitality? (Third Definitive Article)
What limits to the right of visitation does Kant describe? (Third Definitive Article)
Put in your own words the argument of the last two sentences defending the right of visitation and the duty to extend hospitality to refugees and immigrants. (Third Definitive Article)
Further Reflection:
In this essay, Kant identifies three features of the cosmopolitan viewpoint: prohibiting war and unending hostilities between nations, establishing international laws that all nations respect in matters having to do with their relations to one another, and respecting the rights of visitors and the moral duty to extend hospitality to refugees and immigrants. Based on what you know of Kant from our reading of the Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals, how are each of these three claims consistent with his moral philosophy?
Critical Thinking:
Among all of the arguments provided by Kant to defend this cosmopolitan view about war, international law, and hospitality, identify one that is a logical (or analytical) argument, one that is a practical argument, and one that is a contextual (or historical) argument. Logical/analytical arguments draw conclusions from definitions, abstract concepts, and/or design. Practical arguments draw conclusions based on what the consequences or outcomes of a course of action or way of thinking may be. Contextual/historical arguments draw conclusions about the present and the future based on past experience.
Do you agree or disagree with Kant's cosmopolitan views? Why or why not? Explain by giving reasons to agree or disagree.