Why We Love WAR!
By Lawrence LeShan
To understand why humans go to war, we have to acknowledge certain psychological facts. And before we can find ways to prevent war, we have to understand why it is so popular. One central human tension is the problem of how to be both an individual and a part of the larger group. On the one hand is the drive to be more and more unique and on the other to be part of something larger, a full-fledged member of the tribe. Historically the means of resolving this tension between our conflicting needs for singularity and group identification is war. War sharpens experience, heightens perception, and makes one more and more aware of one's own existence. At the same time, war allows us to become part of something larger and more intense. The attraction to war is a human characteristic. Though war does not deliver exactly what it promises, it does offer temporary solutions to psychological problems for a very large percentage of the population.
There are three ideas that, when they appear in society, should be regarded as signals that we are moving toward war, and that strong action must be taken against this drift:
* The idea that there is a particular enemy nation that embodies evil, and that if it were defeated, the world would become paradise.
* The idea that taking action against this enemy is the path to glory and to legendary heights of existence.
* The idea that anyone who does not agree with this accepted wisdom is a traitor.
The way that people begin to perceive reality in the period preceding the outbreak of war is very seductive. It is called the 'mythic' mode of perception, as opposed to the 'sensory' mode we usually use. In the mythic mode we never question why evil exists; it simply is.
In order for war to maintain its mythic aspects, many of the facts of how war is really waged must be concealed. Any information that lessens war's psychological satisfaction is generally rejected. After the Vietnam war ended, war in general became unacceptable to many Americans. The Gulf War once again made war acceptable. The war had a mythic goal - a 'New World Order' in which forces of aggression would be stopped by a civilised 'coalition' led by the United Nations.
Any serious effort to protect ourselves against war must concentrate on two areas: why war is so attractive to humans, and why governments so often act against their interests in moving away from peace. This process can't begin until we acknowledge how easily we shift from 'sensory' reality to 'mythic' reality, especially when international tensions increase.
The ultimate goal is to be able to consciously choose between war and peace, uncontaminated by mythic thinking. The ambitions of a Hitler, a Pol Pot, or a Saddam Hussain may be so bad for the rest of us that declaring war against them is a reasonable and logical decision. But no war will accomplish mythic goals. It will not make the world safe for democracy, nor establish a thousand year Reich, not organise a new world order, nor establish a perfect society, nor end war, nor do anything else except solve a particular problem, at a high cost and with unexpected results. And there will be unexpected results.
Extracted from 'The Psychology of War' by Lawrence LeShan (Helios Press 2002). With acknowledgement to Utne Magazine.
Sensory Reality - Peacetime
1. Good and Evil have many shades of grey. Many groups with different ideas and opinions are legitimate.
2. Now is pretty much like other times.
3. The great forces of nature, such as God or human evolution, are not often evoked in our disputes.
4. When the present period is over, things will go on much as they have in the past.
5. There are many problems to be solved and their relative importance varies from day to day. Life is complex.
6. All people act from pretty much the same motives.
7. Problems start on different levels - economic, political, or personal - and must be dealt with on these levels.
8. We are concerned with what causes the problems we are trying to solve.
9. We can talk to those we disagree with.
10. All people are fundamentally the same.
Mythic Reality - Wartime
1. Good and Evil are reduced to Us and Them. There are no innocent bystanders; there are only those for or those against us. Crucial issues are divided into black and white, and opinions about them are either right or wrong.
2. Now is different from all other times. Everything hangs in the balance; whoever wins now wins forever. It is the time of the final battle between good and evil.
3. 'God is on Our Side,' 'History will absolve us,' and other such slogans indicate our belief that great cosmic forces are with us.
4. Everything will be vastly different after the war. Things will be better if we win and terribly worse if we lose. Winning or losing will change the meaning of the past and the shape of the future.
5. There is only one major problem to be solved. All others are secondary. Life has one major focus.
6. They act from a wish for power. We act from self-defence, benevolence, and reasons of common decency and morality.
7. The real problem started with an act of will by the enemy and can only be solved by breaking his will or by making him helpless to act on it.
8. We are not concerned with causes, only with outcomes.
9. Since the enemy is evil, he naturally lies. Communication is not possible. Only force can settle the issue. We tell the truth (news, education). They lie (propaganda).
10. The same actions are 'good' when we do them and 'evil' when the enemy does them. There is doubt that 'we' and 'they' really belong to the same species.
http://www.greenevents.fsnet.co.uk/art088.html
By Lawrence LeShan
To understand why humans go to war, we have to acknowledge certain psychological facts. And before we can find ways to prevent war, we have to understand why it is so popular. One central human tension is the problem of how to be both an individual and a part of the larger group. On the one hand is the drive to be more and more unique and on the other to be part of something larger, a full-fledged member of the tribe. Historically the means of resolving this tension between our conflicting needs for singularity and group identification is war. War sharpens experience, heightens perception, and makes one more and more aware of one's own existence. At the same time, war allows us to become part of something larger and more intense. The attraction to war is a human characteristic. Though war does not deliver exactly what it promises, it does offer temporary solutions to psychological problems for a very large percentage of the population.
There are three ideas that, when they appear in society, should be regarded as signals that we are moving toward war, and that strong action must be taken against this drift:
* The idea that there is a particular enemy nation that embodies evil, and that if it were defeated, the world would become paradise.
* The idea that taking action against this enemy is the path to glory and to legendary heights of existence.
* The idea that anyone who does not agree with this accepted wisdom is a traitor.
The way that people begin to perceive reality in the period preceding the outbreak of war is very seductive. It is called the 'mythic' mode of perception, as opposed to the 'sensory' mode we usually use. In the mythic mode we never question why evil exists; it simply is.
In order for war to maintain its mythic aspects, many of the facts of how war is really waged must be concealed. Any information that lessens war's psychological satisfaction is generally rejected. After the Vietnam war ended, war in general became unacceptable to many Americans. The Gulf War once again made war acceptable. The war had a mythic goal - a 'New World Order' in which forces of aggression would be stopped by a civilised 'coalition' led by the United Nations.
Any serious effort to protect ourselves against war must concentrate on two areas: why war is so attractive to humans, and why governments so often act against their interests in moving away from peace. This process can't begin until we acknowledge how easily we shift from 'sensory' reality to 'mythic' reality, especially when international tensions increase.
The ultimate goal is to be able to consciously choose between war and peace, uncontaminated by mythic thinking. The ambitions of a Hitler, a Pol Pot, or a Saddam Hussain may be so bad for the rest of us that declaring war against them is a reasonable and logical decision. But no war will accomplish mythic goals. It will not make the world safe for democracy, nor establish a thousand year Reich, not organise a new world order, nor establish a perfect society, nor end war, nor do anything else except solve a particular problem, at a high cost and with unexpected results. And there will be unexpected results.
Extracted from 'The Psychology of War' by Lawrence LeShan (Helios Press 2002). With acknowledgement to Utne Magazine.
Sensory Reality - Peacetime
1. Good and Evil have many shades of grey. Many groups with different ideas and opinions are legitimate.
2. Now is pretty much like other times.
3. The great forces of nature, such as God or human evolution, are not often evoked in our disputes.
4. When the present period is over, things will go on much as they have in the past.
5. There are many problems to be solved and their relative importance varies from day to day. Life is complex.
6. All people act from pretty much the same motives.
7. Problems start on different levels - economic, political, or personal - and must be dealt with on these levels.
8. We are concerned with what causes the problems we are trying to solve.
9. We can talk to those we disagree with.
10. All people are fundamentally the same.
Mythic Reality - Wartime
1. Good and Evil are reduced to Us and Them. There are no innocent bystanders; there are only those for or those against us. Crucial issues are divided into black and white, and opinions about them are either right or wrong.
2. Now is different from all other times. Everything hangs in the balance; whoever wins now wins forever. It is the time of the final battle between good and evil.
3. 'God is on Our Side,' 'History will absolve us,' and other such slogans indicate our belief that great cosmic forces are with us.
4. Everything will be vastly different after the war. Things will be better if we win and terribly worse if we lose. Winning or losing will change the meaning of the past and the shape of the future.
5. There is only one major problem to be solved. All others are secondary. Life has one major focus.
6. They act from a wish for power. We act from self-defence, benevolence, and reasons of common decency and morality.
7. The real problem started with an act of will by the enemy and can only be solved by breaking his will or by making him helpless to act on it.
8. We are not concerned with causes, only with outcomes.
9. Since the enemy is evil, he naturally lies. Communication is not possible. Only force can settle the issue. We tell the truth (news, education). They lie (propaganda).
10. The same actions are 'good' when we do them and 'evil' when the enemy does them. There is doubt that 'we' and 'they' really belong to the same species.
http://www.greenevents.fsnet.co.uk/art088.html
