University Essay: Comparing War and Political Strategies

This essay provides a comparative analysis of war and politics, highlighting their contrasting approaches to conflict resolution. It begins by defining both concepts, emphasizing that while war relies on violence and force, politics employs peaceful and diplomatic means. The essay then delves into the fundamental differences in the mechanisms used by each, examining how war leverages physical strength and politics utilizes intellectual and mental prowess. It explores the ideologies associated with each, such as honor and glory in war versus cunningness and diplomacy in politics. The discussion also covers the ultimate goal of both processes—the attainment of power and authority. The essay concludes by asserting that war and politics, though distinct, are complementary, often working in tandem to address human conflicts. The essay references Barbour and Knight's work, solidifying the understanding of politics as the art of influencing others.

Running head: WAR AND POLITICS
War and Politics
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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War and Politics can be seen as the two sides of the same coin. The concept of war
uses violence and all other means normally considered immoral and unethical by the majority
of the human intelligentsia for the resolution of a particular issue or conflict. The concept of
politics, on the other hand, uses peaceful and diplomatic means for the resolution of any
particular issue or conflict. Therefore, it can be said that the institution of war believes in the
display of physical strength for the resolution of a particular issue, whereas the institution of
politics believes in the use of intellectual strength for the resolution of the same issue. It is
precisely for this reason that Christine Barbour and Gerald C. Knight in the chapter 1 of their
book “Politics: Who get What and How?” described politics to be “the art by the use of
which one can get others to do what they want them to do”. It is to be noted that both the
processes of war and politics are used by people for the resolution of the various human
conflicts, which they face. However, one process believes in the resolution of the issues by
peaceful, whereas the other process believes in the resolution of issues by violent means. The
particular essay intends to study the key differences between the two processes and the
mechanism chosen by them for the resolution of the human conflicts. This is the thesis
statement of the essay.
Human beings by nature are very peaceful creatures. However, it is often seen that
when several people cohabit a particular place or a space from different cultural, educational,
social, and other diverse backgrounds, differences are bound to arise. This kind of situation
leads to the creation of conditions of human conflict. Some people believe in the resolution of
such situations by peaceful means by taking the aid of politics. However, there are others,
who try to resolve the issue by violent means through the display of strength by taking the aid
of war. The concept of war, since the traditional times has been attributed with various
diverse features like personal glory, honor, respect and other attributes of the human nature.
The concept of politics, on the other hand, is generally considered to be a playground for the

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people, who cannot afford to put on a display of physical strength. It is to be noted that both
the concepts create winners as well as losers. In this regard, the person left standing alive on
the battleground, no matter what price he or she had paid to remain alive, becomes the
winner, whereas the person, who dies in the process becomes loser. However, in the concept
of politics, the person wielding the maximum amount of influence on others, no matter what
kind of strategies he or she uses, becomes the winner in comparison to the others.
It is true that the concepts of war and politics are the two opposite sides of the same,
however, there are some basic differences between the two. The primary difference between
the two processes is in the difference of the mechanism used by the two concepts. The
institution of war believes in the display of muscular strength and thereby the people, who
believe in war often resort to violent means. The concept of politics, on the other hand,
believes in the display of intellectual as well as mental strength. Therefore, the people who
believe in the machinery of politics are believers in the concept of the resolution of any issues
by peaceful means. However, it is seen that the paths of the two institutions often converge
and at such times the two processes work together, like the scenario of the world wars.
Therefore, it can be said that the two processes are complementary to each other and when
one process fails, the other process is utilized to save the situation.
The key difference between the two processes of war and politics is in the kind of
machinery used by the two institutions for the resolution of the issues. The process of war
tries to resolve any issue on the basis of the violent action whereas the process of politics tries
to resolve any issue on the basis of non-violent actions. The difference between the outlook
taken by the two institutions for the resolution of the conflict can be explained on the basis of
the ideas and ideologies like honor, glory, respect and others, attached to the two processes of
war and politics. It is to be noted that since the ancient times, ideas as well as ideologies like
heroic valor, honor, respect, personal glory and other attributes have been attached to the

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concept of war, whereas ideas like cunningness, diplomacy, manipulation and other attributes
are attached to the concept of politics. This goes a long way in explaining the mechanism
opted out by the two processes for the resolution of the conflicts. It is to be noted that the end
result desired by both the processes is the attainment of power over the other people. Power
can be defined as the ability or the quality to get others to do what a particular individual or
organization wants them to do (Barbourne& Knight, 2018). Therefore, it can be said that the
primary motive of both the processes is the achievement of power and authority.
Therefore, it can be concluded from the above discussion that the two processes of
war and politics are the two sides of the same coin. Although, the two processes use different
means for the resolution of the conflicts that arise, but underneath all, their basic motive is the
same, that is, the resolution of the issue that they face. It can also be said that both the
processes are complementary to each other and often work in sync for the resolution of the
particular issues.

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References
Barbour, C., & Wright, G. C. (2018). Keeping the republic: Power and Citizenship American
Politics. SAGE Publishing.