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A rational kind of madness

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  • David Keen

Abstract

The paper argues against the notion that wars, whether international or civil in nature, are essentially irrational and “imposed” on societies. Rather they should be regarded as emerging from political and economic processes taking place within such societies—particularly when “peace” involves violent processes as the corollary of economic development and political consolidation. The paper examines the rational nature of warfare, turning to historical examples before the modern period. This framework is applied to the civil wars in Sudan and Sierra Leone, leading to a general proposition as to the connection between “economic war” and the weak state. The paper concludes that it is essential to look at the functions of war as well as its costs in order to bring it to an end, and to design appropriate diplomatic and economic pressures to bring this about.

Suggested Citation

  • David Keen, 1997. "A rational kind of madness," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(1), pages 67-75.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:oxdevs:v:25:y:1997:i:1:p:67-75
    DOI: 10.1080/13600819708424122
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    Cited by:

    1. Benedikt Korf, 2007. "Contract or war? On the rules of the game in civil wars," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(5), pages 685-694.
    2. Benedikt Korf, 2006. "Functions of violence revisited: greed, pride and grievance in Sri Lanka’s civil war," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 6(2), pages 109-122, April.
    3. Tilman Brück & Kati Schindler, 2008. "The Impact of Conflict and Fragility on Households: A Conceptual Framework with Reference to Widows," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2008-83, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Korf, Benedikt, 2003. "Conflict - Threat or Opportunity? War, Livelihoods, and Vulnerability in Sri Lanka," Institutional Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources Discussion Papers 18837, Humboldt University Berlin, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    5. Mathur Somesh K., 2001. "Casualties of Militarization in the Contemporary World: Democracy and Development," Peace Economics, Peace Science, and Public Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(3), pages 1-42, July.

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