The Reasons for War essays

The Reasons for War essays Plato states that the "nature and origin of war" has to do with a nations desire for wealth and luxury at the expense of its neighbors. Although this has some truth, I dont think that its the only factor which causes war to break out. In this paper, I will explain other reasons for war, and also give examples of each. I believe it is important to understand what war entails, and also what it means to a given population. First of all, war can be defined as armed conflict between countries or factions within a country. During the time of Plato, war usually was the result of problems between city-states within Greece. Socrates and Plato both were citizens of the city-state of Athens. In this paper, I will refer to city-states as the two opposing sides. When we speak of war, it is important to understand that it is usually a last resource. The bloodshed which occurs sometimes causes a whole population of people to be wiped out. With this in mind, I believe a major reason for war is when a group cannot sustain living, because they lack the bare necessities of life. An example of this is in South America, where an indigenous tribe called the Yanomamos live. They are broken up into different bands and rely on the Earth to sustain them. If and when they run out of fertile land, they must find more, even if that means that they must encroach on another band. Many times, war breaks out between these two bands until the demands are met. These wars do not bring about wealth or power, but instead keeps the band strong enough to live. Another major reason for war is when a group of people are oppressed within a city-state. Usually, the smaller group is of a different race or religion and many times, the ruling class impose strict laws against the group. If the smaller group rebels, this will cause war within the city-state. There have been many examples of this throughout history. One of the most impressive o...