In Defense of the Common Good: Strategy, Ethics, and the Responsibilities of Command
Abstract
This thesis is addressed primarily to just war ethicists and military thinkers in the virtue tradition. It argues that Aristotelian virtue ethics can give a coherent account of the ethical and strategic responsibilities of command. To advance its case, it constructs and applies a four-part framework of the purposes, responsibilities, acts, and character of command uniting Aristotles account of ethics with Clausewitzs account of strategy. This works main contribution is to reframe just war principles in two ways: first, by integrating them into a unified account of moral psychology originating in wars purposes and ending in the commanders character, and second, by setting them in the context of strategic responsibilities. The result is a coherent framework which enables officers and scholars to investigate strategic and ethical aspects of command in an integrated manner.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2018
- Accession Number
- AD1083734
Entities
People
- James M. Valpiani
Organizations
- Air University