SOCIAL ASPECTS OF INTERNATIONAL AGGRESSION

In: International social science journal: ISSJ, Band 23, Heft 1, S. 68-78

Abstract

3 major spheres in which aggression develops are discerned: individual; within the context of a nat'l or state community; & as an instrument of foreign policy. This classification is based on quantitative factors-the scale of the aggression & the number of individuals involved in it. Modern theories on the origin of armed aggression as an instrument of foreign policy are summarized. The following Sch's of thought are noted: those ascribing internat'l aggression to biological factors (this is seen as a highly dangerous approach); those situated on the boundary between biology & geopol (theories referring to the impact of the pop explosion; these are considered inaccurate); those theories which hold diff levels of ED responsible for aggression; & a number of geopol'al theories as well as sociol'al theories. All these main groups seem to suffer from a one-sided approach to the problem, giving prominence to one or the other particular factor & Ignoring or underestimating the complex soc, econ, & pol'al factors in their interrelationship with each other. Analysis of the evidence shows that org'ed aggression as an instrument of foreign policy occurs at a specific stage in the evolution of mankind, with the rise of private ownership of production & the existence of mutually antagonistic classes & states. The term 'aggression' cannot properly be used in the case of primitive communities, where conflicts between individuals, clans, tribes or groups of tribes did not necessarily stem from the existing soc order & production system. A review of history shows that aggression has differed in character at diff stages of cultural development. Aggression can only be fully eradicated from human experience if its cause, societies with antagonistic classes, becomes a thing of the past. But it can be averted even in circumstances where states with diff soc systems coexist, if equality of rights, mutual understanding & trust between the states, & non-interference in domestic affairs are accepted. M. Maxfield.