In his 1795 essay toward perpetual peace, philosopher Immanuel Kant makes the observation that wars are not caused by a lack of love of one’s country, but by a love of one’s own country more than that of others.
Immanuel Kant begins his essay with a discussion of reason and instinct. He says that it is natural for humans to be rational beings and he gives examples from nature to show this. In addition, there is no natural law which requires humans to be rational beings, but there is a natural law that requires all beings to act according to their own instincts. Therefore, it seems obvious that humans must be rational beings because it is instinctual for them to be so.
Philosopher argues that all people are created equal and should be treated equally. He states that because we are all equal human beings, we should not be killing each other over differences in religion or nationality. The only way to stop wars and violence is to treat everyone equally and understand that no one is better than anyone else.
In addition, Kant states that there are two main causes for war: self-interest and national interest. Self-interest refers to wanting something for oneself or taking what belongs to someone else. National interest refers to protecting one’s own land, property or people from another nation or group of people who want what they have. Kant believes that if both sides would put aside their selfish desires and instead focus on protecting their national interests, then there would be no need for war.
