Larry May argues that the best way to understand war crimes is as crimes against humanness rather than as violations of justice. He shows that in a deeply pluralistic world, we need to understand the rules of war as the collective responsibility of states that send their citizens into harm's way, as the embodiment of humanity, and as the chief way for soldiers to retain a sense of honour on the battlefield. Throughout, May demonstrates that the principle of humanness is the cornerstone of international humanitarian law, and is itself the basis of the traditional principles of discrimination, necessity, and proportionality. He draws extensively on the older Just War tradition to assess recent cases from the International Tribunal for Yugoslavia as well as examples of atrocities from the archives of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Argues that war crimes are best understood as crimes against humanness rather than violations of justice.

About the Author
Larry May is Professor of Philosophy at Washington University in St Louis. He is the author of several books, including The Socially Responsive Self, Masculinity and Morality, and Crimes against Humanity, the first book in a trilogy of volumes on the normative foundations of international criminal law. War Crimes and Just War, the second volume in the trilogy, received the Frank Chapman Sharp Prize from the American Philosophical Association.

Reviews
"...An excellent book-a pleasure to read, and one of the very few to consider searchingly the deepest moral and political roots of just war theory and the international laws of armed conflict. It offers a unique, refreshing, and important contribution to just war theory in its attempt to blend law with morality, and to revive a virtue ethics reading of the relevant principles. Whether one agrees with May's approach or not, this is essential reading for anyone interested in the concepts of just war." -Brian Orend, Ethics and International Affairs
"Readers with philosophical or legal interest in [Just War] issues will not want to miss May's book, in which he offers much that is novel and more that is insightful." -Peter Tramel, West Point, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews
"The book is well-written, thoughtful, and has been highly praised in academic circles...The authors approach to war crimes is to be commended." Fred L. Borch, Military History
"Larry May has produced a very serious tome that is logically organized, cogently written, deeply researched, and profoundly expressed...The work is especially important in this new world in which interstate war, or at least the threat of it, unfortunately seems to be making a comeback...should be required reading in both the classroom and the halls of power. Summing up: Essential." -M.D. Crosston, Clemson University, Choice



Book Information
ISBN 9780521691536
Author Larry May
Format Paperback
Page Count 358
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 530g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 20mm