William James

This reading about William James was very interesting to read because where most of the other articles and authors that we have been reading argue for nonviolence and against violence where James argues for it and says that society actually needs war for certain things. He says that because it is such a big part of the globe that it is in some sense a positive. “The military ideals of hardihood and discipline would be wrought into the growing fibre of the people; no one would remain blind as the luxurious classes now are blind, to mans’s relations to the globe he lives” (James 183). In this sense, it does open the eyes of the upper class to the hardships the lower class has gone through to make the world what it is. However, it seems that firstly the upper class also are involved in wars. In fact it used to be that only the upper class could participate in wars. James relates wars to a series of blue collar jobs that the upper class doesn’t usually take a part in. I agree with him where he says that the upper class would be more suited to raising their children to be more conscious of the globe as a whole. It is surprising that he relates them to war though. For these blue collar jobs are similar to war only in that they are a physical struggle. They however don’t force people to kill others which can cause serious psychological damage to the people involved in war. The discipline in war is also very constructive James claims. This is true, but the discipline can be found in other areas of life that don’t deal with the whole picture that wars do. He quotes H.G. Wells who says war takes people out of the ugly street life that people are often involved in. The argument then comes to be what is more damaging to a person? The possibility of killing or being killed or living in an environment where other violence occurs daily?