Reflections on War and Peace and the Constitution

(Hardback)

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The attitudes and assumptions of different cultures and historical periods toward war and the maintenance of peace are reviewed by recalling authors who include Euripides, Sophocles, Plato, Cervantes, Shakespeare, Hobbes, and Zola. The challenges of war, peace, and national security for and by Americans are examined, and documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of 1787. The lives and thought of eminent Americans are also recalled (including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt), as well as the challenges posed by incidents such as the Dreyfus Affair and monstrosities such as the Second World War Holocaust. The Appendixes reinforce these inquiries by providing critical documents in American history and interviews with a Holocaust survivor.

Reviews

The crown jewels of American politics rests in the United States Constitution.Following the tradition of such formidable scholars as Alexander Meiklejohn, Harry Kalven, W. W. Crosskey, and Philip Kurland, and drawing heavily on great thinkers from Homer to Aristotle and from Hobbes to Kojve and Strauss, George Anastaplo in his Reflections series discloses the many riches of our founding document (and of the great books). He discovers new treasures and thrusts old nuggets of wisdom into a fascinating, novel light. This volume is a gold mine for explorers into the meaning of prudence regarding war and peace. -- J. Harvey Lomax, University of Memphis
This culminating volume of a final series of essays is in many ways the culmination of George Anastaplos lifes work. The relevance of the Greek example to the quandaries of our present wars, including the Iraq war, is clearer than ever here, and the plea for reason in moments of passion is stronger than ever. On Sir Christopher Wrens tomb in St. Pauls, one of his greatest designs, is a plaque that simply says, Si monumentum requires, circumspiceIf you seek a monument, look around you. This book says that about George Anastaplos entire life, and also about our own need to rethink our involvement in war and peace and the Constitution. -- Wendy Doniger, University of Chicago

Author Bio

George Anastaplo (19252014) was lecturer in the liberal arts at the University of Chicago, professor of law at Loyola University of Chicago, and professor emeritus of political science and of philosophy at Dominican University.