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Essay on Peace 500+ Words

Peace is a simple word, but it holds immeasurable significance in our lives and in the world. It’s a state of harmony and tranquility, where there is no violence or conflict. In this essay, we will explore the importance of peace, its profound impact on individuals and societies, and why it is a goal worth pursuing.

Thesis Statement : Peace is the foundation of a harmonious world, where people live free from fear and violence, and where cooperation and understanding prevail.

The Meaning of Peace

Before we dive into the importance of peace, let’s understand what it means. Peace is not just the absence of war; it’s a state of well-being where individuals and communities coexist in harmony. It’s about respecting differences, resolving conflicts peacefully, and promoting cooperation.

The Individual Impact of Peace

Peace has a significant impact on individuals:

a. Mental Well-being : In a peaceful environment, people experience less stress and anxiety, leading to better mental health.

b. Physical Health : Reduced violence and conflict contribute to better physical health and longer life spans.

c. Education : Peaceful societies tend to invest more in education, leading to better opportunities for personal growth and development.

Peace and Relationships

Peace is vital for building strong and lasting relationships:

a. Family : Peaceful homes are nurturing environments where love and understanding thrive. It’s a place where children can grow up feeling safe and loved.

b. Friendships : In peaceful friendships, trust is the foundation. Friends can rely on each other, and conflicts are resolved through communication, not confrontation.

c. Global Relationships : On a global scale, peaceful countries can cooperate, trade, and work together to address common challenges like climate change and poverty.

Peace in Society

Peace also plays a crucial role in societies:

a. Economic Prosperity : Peaceful nations tend to have stable economies. When there’s less conflict, businesses can thrive, creating jobs and prosperity.

b. Political Stability : Peace is essential for political stability. When there is less violence, people can participate in democratic processes without fear.

c. Safety : In peaceful societies, people can go about their daily lives without fear of violence or crime.

The Price of Conflict

Understanding the importance of peace is easier when we consider the consequences of conflict:

a. Loss of Life : Wars and conflicts lead to the loss of countless lives, leaving behind grieving families and communities.

b. Destruction : Conflict destroys homes, infrastructure, and economies, making it challenging for communities to recover.

c. Refugees : Conflicts often create refugees who must flee their homes in search of safety and shelter.

The Role of Peacebuilders

Peace does not happen on its own; it requires dedicated individuals and organizations:

a. Nelson Mandela : The late Nelson Mandela is an iconic peacebuilder who worked tirelessly to end apartheid in South Africa through nonviolent means.

b. United Nations : The United Nations is an organization that promotes peace and security worldwide. It mediates conflicts, provides humanitarian aid, and fosters cooperation among nations.

Everyday Acts of Peace

Peace is not just for world leaders and organizations; everyone can contribute to peace:

a. Conflict Resolution : We can learn how to resolve conflicts peacefully by talking, listening, and finding compromises.

b. Kindness : Acts of kindness, like helping someone in need or being friendly to a new classmate, promote peace on a small scale.

c. Tolerance : We can embrace our differences and treat everyone with respect, regardless of their background.

Challenges to Peace

While peace is a noble goal, it faces challenges:

a. Misunderstanding : Misunderstandings can lead to conflicts. To overcome this, we need to improve communication and empathy.

b. Inequality : Social and economic inequality can lead to unrest and conflicts. Addressing inequality is a crucial step towards peace.

The Path Forward

Achieving and maintaining peace requires effort and commitment:

a. Education : Educating ourselves and others about the importance of peace is the first step.

b. Conflict Resolution : Learning how to resolve conflicts peacefully is a valuable skill that we can all acquire.

c. Empathy : Developing empathy for others can help us understand their perspectives and reduce conflict.

Conclusion of Essay on Peace

In conclusion, peace is not just a distant dream; it’s an attainable goal that benefits individuals, communities, and the world. It’s the key to better mental and physical health, stronger relationships, and prosperous societies. While challenges to peace exist, we can overcome them through education, empathy, and a commitment to resolving conflicts peacefully. Let us all work together to build a world where peace prevails, where differences are celebrated, and where cooperation and understanding lead us to a brighter and harmonious future. Peace is not just a wish; it’s a journey we can all embark upon.

Also Check: List of 500+ Topics for Writing Essay

Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention Essay

Introduction, rwanda genocide, libya crisis.

In the world there have been many conflicts in human interactions. These usually result from struggle for getting access and control over various natural resources such as land, minerals and water among others and due to differing political interests. There are usually disagreements between the parties involved which sometimes lead to wars.

When these wars arise, sometimes the member parties require external intervention in bringing it to an end. There are various means of preventing arise of conflicts. The method of approach to each conflict is usually different from each other.

This is mainly due to the root cause of the conflict in reference to internal and external factors and the possible consequences of the intervention to the parties involved, citizen and the world as a whole. Thus in undertaking any intervention, it is good to observe the best way out of the conflict.

This paper seeks to look into peace and conflict resolution taking critical analysis of the cases in Rwanda and Libya. It is to evaluate whether intervention by external organizations such as the UN was necessary citing the similarity and differences in both cases.

The Rwandan genocide was as a result of conflict between the Hutus and the Tutsi. There had been power competition in Rwanda with the tribe in power being oppressive. It was easy to identify the ethnicity of a person from the national identification card. There had been other conflicts before the genocide that left many people dead. They played significant role in dividing the people in ethnic lines.

Rwanda was a dictatorial country by the end of 1980’s. There were even regulations restricting interaction between the Hutus and Tutsi for example in the military forces. There were many refugees outside Rwanda who were denied access back to their mother country.

This led them to organize themselves into various groups and find their way back. These troops such as the Rwandan patriotic front attacked Rwandan government from outside the country in 1990-1992. This led to the rise of more ethnic tensions, displacement and the death of so many Tutsi.

The death of the Rwandan president in 1994 from an assassination led to the eruption of the massacre. The Hutus attacked the Tutsi killing them. In response to the attacks, the Rwandan patriotic front fought for about three months to overcome the Hutus. This led to more than half a million people dying. There were meeting on how to settle the disagreement in Tanzania before the genocide.

France was observed to take side in support of the government. The international intervention to stop the genocide was not present despite the information about the planning. This led to the killings of many civilians in respect to the tribe they belonged to. This was because there was information about the planning of the massacre yet nothing significant was done.

Muamar Gaddafi has been the leader in Libya for over forty years. During this time he has strengthened his political strength by appointing selected member to be in charge of crucial sectors of his government. There has been uneven distribution of resources and power. This led to the emergence of rival groups. The country is well developed.

There have been the revolution movements in most of the North African nations aimed at initiating change in the governance but stopped when it landed on Libya. There was a delay in provision of housing by the government to the citizens and allegations of misuse of power that led to the protest.

In response to the protest Gadaffi used his military on the civilians. The rebels on the other hand started fighting aiming to capturing the oil towns. This has led to the death of many in the struggle for power.

The civil fighting in Libya has attracted the intervention of the western country. These countries have deployed military intervention in Libya to help in calming the situation. The military intervention was backed up by the United Nations. This intervention has led to the destruction of many properties.

In the case of Libya, other means of solving the problem could have been used with the military intervention being the last option. Despite the intervention bringing peace in the country, there are many other repercussions that follow. This is evident in cases of Iraq and Afghanistan.

There have been intentions by the some countries arming the rebels with more weapons. This step is not right as it is likely to encourage the continuous persistent and development of the war. This means that more people are to lose their lives and that this will create more and more separation (Simpson 1).

The civil wars in Rwanda and Libya have similarity. In both there were specific persons who were at power and denied the others their rights. This led to the emergence of opposition and eventually civil war which caused loss of lives to many. In the Rwanda genocide, there was no intervention by the United Nations despite the information about the planning. In the Libya crisis, the United Nation intervention was very fast.

It has taken sides and though intervention is good, on the other side it has its repercussions. The bloodshed in Libya is less than that of the Rwandan genocide with both parties armed with warfare machinery such as grenade and missile launchers.

The intent of civil war in Rwanda was due to ethnical differences which is not the case in Libya. There are argument that the quick intervention is based on the oil that is present in Libya and the lack of cooperation between Gaddafi and the west.

Rwanda. Rwanda: How the genocide happened . BBC, 2008. Web.

Simpson, John. Halt to rebel advancing creates Libya divide . New Africa, 2011. Web.

  • Chicago (A-D)
  • Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2023, December 20). Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention. https://ivypanda.com/essays/peace-and-conflict-resolution-essay-2/

"Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention." IvyPanda , 20 Dec. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/peace-and-conflict-resolution-essay-2/.

IvyPanda . (2023) 'Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention'. 20 December.

IvyPanda . 2023. "Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention." December 20, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/peace-and-conflict-resolution-essay-2/.

1. IvyPanda . "Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention." December 20, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/peace-and-conflict-resolution-essay-2/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Peace and Conflict Resolution: External Intervention." December 20, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/peace-and-conflict-resolution-essay-2/.

  • The Rwandan Genocide: Hutus and Tutsi Ethnic Hatred
  • Ethnic Conflicts and Misrepresentation of Rwandan Hutus
  • Gaddafi Deserved a Private Death
  • Libya: Moammar Gaddafi
  • Hotel Rwanda': The 1994 Rwandan Genocide's History
  • The History of the Genocide in the Rwandan
  • Rwanda Genocide: Process and Outcomes
  • Genocide in the "Ghost of Rwanda" Documentary
  • Genocide in Rwanda: Insiders and Outsiders
  • Muammar Gaddafi’s Death: Scene and Dilemma
  • History and current state of nuclear proliferation in Asia
  • Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
  • Conflict between India, Pakistan, China and Kashmir
  • Humanitarian Intervention in Libya
  • The United Nations in Africa

short essay about peace

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Essay On Peace for School Students in 100 – 300

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Essay on Peace

Peace is something we all wish for as it allows us growth and prosperity in life. A society without peace cannot survive for long and there will always be disputes between people. Peace is defined as the absence of any disturbance, conflict, or violence. It exists on various levels, including personal, interpersonal, societal, and international. Writing a peace essay requires a proper understanding of this term, from its importance in our lives to how it can shape a better tomorrow. Here are some samples of essay on peace for school students.

short essay about peace

Table of Contents

  • 1 Essay on Peace in 100 Words
  • 2 Essay on Peace in 200 Words
  • 3.1 Why is Peace Important?
  • 3.2 Ways to Promote Peace

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short essay about peace

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Essay on Peace in 100 Words

Peace refers to societal friendship and harmony, where negative activities like violence, hostility, and hatred are not present. The significance of peace can have multiple levels, from individual to societal and international. Peace is something that comes from within. 

On a personal level, a person must have inner calmness and contentment to achieve peace. Peace becomes a broader aspect at the societal and international level, which involves concepts like social justice, equality, and the presence of diplomacy and cooperation between nations.

Achieving and maintaining peace requires efforts from all sides. In this way, it can foster understanding and tolerance among individuals and communities. 

Also Read: Essay on Farmer for School Students

Essay on Peace in 200 Words

Peace can only be achieved when everyone in the room abides by the laws of friendship and cooperation. Consider this quote on peace by Mahatma Gandhi, ‘If you want real peace in the world, start with children.’ He and thousands of other freedom fighters struggled for decades to achieve true peace.

Although now are not living in a colonial era, we are struggling for true peace; a society free from poverty, hunger, corruption, and crime; one where everyone can feel safe. Only in a world free from the constant threat of violence, conflict, or war can allow us to pursue our goals, develop relationships, and lead fulfilling lives.

Nations establish diplomatic relations so that peace can be maintained at the international level. This cooperation between nations is essential to prevent conflicts that can have far-reaching consequences. Peace is an essential component for the protection of human rights, ensuring that individuals can live free from violence and oppression.

We are the future and it is our duty to establish law and order to achieve true peace. Only then we can cultivate the seed of education, healthcare, and environmental conservation . Our today’s efforts will affect our tomorrow. The importance of nurturing and maintaining peace cannot be overstated, for it is the cornerstone upon which the aspirations of individuals and societies rest.

Also Read: Essay on New Year for School Students

Essay on Peace in 300 Words

We all want a free-will life; one where we can achieve and fulfil our goals in real time. Peace is very important for individuals, society, and nations to strive towards the road of success. Achieving peace requires collective efforts so that we can create a world where everyone can live free from fear, violence, and the threat of conflict. 

We all want a life of free will, where we can achieve and fulfill our goals in real time but how can it be possible with so much bloodshed and mayhem around the corner, where one man is threatening others with a missile?

Why is Peace Important?

Peace is a multifaceted concept and its importance varies from individual level to global level.

  • Peace offers us all the necessary conditions to lead a secure and fulfilled life.
  • A peaceful society creates a sense of brotherhood, where everyone is respected and appreciated for their achievements.
  • It fosters cooperative relationships among communities and societies and encourages cooperation, understanding, and tolerance.
  • New heights of economic development can be achieved in a peaceful society.
  • Communities can exchange ideas and traditions to foster mutual understanding and appreciation.
  • Peace is considered as an investment in the well-being of future generations.

Ways to Promote Peace

There are multiple ways in which we can promote peace, starting with ourselves and understanding how beneficial it can be for us in career prosperity and building relationships.

  • Volunteering for peaceful rallies.
  • Create a peaceful mantra/ affirmation.
  • Sign a peace pledge.
  • Learn to forgive your enemies.
  • Understand what are the causes of violence.
  • Listen to learned individuals.
  • Learn from others’ mistakes.
  • Learn to say sorry and accept your mistakes

Creating a peaceful society is not as difficult as it may sound; for it requires collective effort. Once we understand what we are capable of achieving, then we are just a step away from building a ‘perfect world.’

Ans: Peace is essential for the prosperity of individuals and society as a whole.  A society without peace cannot survive for long and there will always be disputes between people. Peace is defined as the absence of any disturbance, conflict, or violence. It exists on different various levels, including personal, interpersonal, societal, and international.

Ans: Without peace, our world cannot survive, as there will be conflicts and wars between countries, communities will act in non-cooperative ways, and individuals will have grudges against each other. Peace is very important to establish a world where everyone can live in harmony and lead a prosperous life.

Ans: Mentioned below are some lines on the importance of peace: -Peace is the bedrock to edifice human progress and prosperity. -Peace is like the thread that is capable of weaving the fabric of harmony and understanding. -Peace is the key to unlocking the potential of individuals and communities. -Peace is like a guiding light, that offers us solace, security, and a path to reconciliation. -Peace is a lifelong journey towards a world where compassion triumphs over conflict.

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December 2, 2021

Peace Is More Than War’s Absence, and New Research Explains How to Build It

A new project measures ways to promote positive social relations among groups

By Peter T. Coleman , Allegra Chen-Carrel & Vincent Hans Michael Stueber

Closeup of two people shaking hands

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Today, the misery of war is all too striking in places such as Syria, Yemen, Tigray, Myanmar and Ukraine. It can come as a surprise to learn that there are scores of sustainably peaceful societies around the world, ranging from indigenous people in the Xingu River Basin in Brazil to countries in the European Union. Learning from these societies, and identifying key drivers of harmony, is a vital process that can help promote world peace.

Unfortunately, our current ability to find these peaceful mechanisms is woefully inadequate. The Global Peace Index (GPI) and its complement the Positive Peace Index (PPI) rank 163 nations annually and are currently the leading measures of peacefulness. The GPI, launched in 2007 by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), was designed to measure negative peace , or the absence of violence, destructive conflict, and war. But peace is more than not fighting. The PPI, launched in 2009, was supposed to recognize this and track positive peace , or the promotion of peacefulness through positive interactions like civility, cooperation and care.

Yet the PPI still has many serious drawbacks. To begin with, it continues to emphasize negative peace, despite its name. The components of the PPI were selected and are weighted based on existing national indicators that showed the “strongest correlation with the GPI,” suggesting they are in effect mostly an extension of the GPI. For example, the PPI currently includes measures of factors such as group grievances, dissemination of false information, hostility to foreigners, and bribes.

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The index also lacks an empirical understanding of positive peace. The PPI report claims that it focuses on “positive aspects that create the conditions for a society to flourish.” However, there is little indication of how these aspects were derived (other than their relationships with the GPI). For example, access to the internet is currently a heavily weighted indicator in the PPI. But peace existed long before the internet, so is the number of people who can go online really a valid measure of harmony?

The PPI has a strong probusiness bias, too. Its 2021 report posits that positive peace “is a cross-cutting facilitator of progress, making it easier for businesses to sell.” A prior analysis of the PPI found that almost half the indicators were directly related to the idea of a “Peace Industry,” with less of a focus on factors found to be central to positive peace such as gender inclusiveness, equity and harmony between identity groups.

A big problem is that the index is limited to a top-down, national-level approach. The PPI’s reliance on national-level metrics masks critical differences in community-level peacefulness within nations, and these provide a much more nuanced picture of societal peace . Aggregating peace data at the national level, such as focusing on overall levels of inequality rather than on disparities along specific group divides, can hide negative repercussions of the status quo for minority communities.

To fix these deficiencies, we and our colleagues have been developing an alternative approach under the umbrella of the Sustaining Peace Project . Our effort has various components , and these can provide a way to solve the problems in the current indices. Here are some of the elements:

Evidence-based factors that measure positive and negative peace. The peace project began with a comprehensive review of the empirical studies on peaceful societies, which resulted in identifying 72 variables associated with sustaining peace. Next, we conducted an analysis of ethnographic and case study data comparing “peace systems,” or clusters of societies that maintain peace with one another, with nonpeace systems. This allowed us to identify and measure a set of eight core drivers of peace. These include the prevalence of an overarching social identity among neighboring groups and societies; their interconnections such as through trade or intermarriage; the degree to which they are interdependent upon one another in terms of ecological, economic or security concerns; the extent to which their norms and core values support peace or war; the role that rituals, symbols and ceremonies play in either uniting or dividing societies; the degree to which superordinate institutions exist that span neighboring communities; whether intergroup mechanisms for conflict management and resolution exist; and the presence of political leadership for peace versus war.

A core theory of sustaining peace . We have also worked with a broad group of peace, conflict and sustainability scholars to conceptualize how these many variables operate as a complex system by mapping their relationships in a causal loop diagram and then mathematically modeling their core dynamics This has allowed us to gain a comprehensive understanding of how different constellations of factors can combine to affect the probabilities of sustaining peace.

Bottom-up and top-down assessments . Currently, the Sustaining Peace Project is applying techniques such as natural language processing and machine learning to study markers of peace and conflict speech in the news media. Our preliminary research suggests that linguistic features may be able to distinguish between more and less peaceful societies. These methods offer the potential for new metrics that can be used for more granular analyses than national surveys.

We have also been working with local researchers from peaceful societies to conduct interviews and focus groups to better understand the in situ dynamics they believe contribute to sustaining peace in their communities. For example in Mauritius , a highly multiethnic society that is today one of the most peaceful nations in Africa, we learned of the particular importance of factors like formally addressing legacies of slavery and indentured servitude, taboos against proselytizing outsiders about one’s religion, and conscious efforts by journalists to avoid divisive and inflammatory language in their reporting.

Today, global indices drive funding and program decisions that impact countless lives, making it critical to accurately measure what contributes to socially just, safe and thriving societies. These indices are widely reported in news outlets around the globe, and heads of state often reference them for their own purposes. For example, in 2017 , Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, though he and his country were mired in corruption allegations, referenced his country’s positive increase on the GPI by stating, “Receiving such high praise from an institute that once named this country the most violent in the world is extremely significant.” Although a 2019 report on funding for peace-related projects shows an encouraging shift towards supporting positive peace and building resilient societies, many of these projects are really more about preventing harm, such as grants for bolstering national security and enhancing the rule of law.

The Sustaining Peace Project, in contrast, includes metrics for both positive and negative peace, is enhanced by local community expertise, and is conceptually coherent and based on empirical findings. It encourages policy makers and researchers to refocus attention and resources on initiatives that actually promote harmony, social health and positive reciprocity between groups. It moves away from indices that rank entire countries and instead focuses on identifying factors that, through their interaction, bolster or reduce the likelihood of sustaining peace. It is a holistic perspective.  

Tracking peacefulness across the globe is a highly challenging endeavor. But there is great potential in cooperation between peaceful communities, researchers and policy makers to produce better methods and metrics. Measuring peace is simply too important to get only half-right. 

Global Peace Careers

What is Peace? Types, Examples, Learning Opportunities

Pursuing peace is one of the few values we share across cultural, political, and linguistic divides. The challenge, however, comes in understanding what ‘peace’ really means and how we are able to pursue it.

In summary, peace is… the feeling and experience of developing your capacity for maintaining social cohesion, positive interactions, and justice, free from the experience or fear of negative conflict and harm.

This definition merges a number of peace and conflict related concepts. Each of these concepts can help us understand the nuance of peace better. It can show why groups who all say they are seeking peace may come into conflict in doing so. It also shows us how peace can be understood as a feeling, experience, and also an outcome, all at the same time.

5 Different Types of Peace

Going phrase-by-phrase of the above definition, we can explore 5 different types or aspects of peace. Each of these help us understand peace – and by extension global conflicts – better.

#1 Peace as an ongoing process

Peace is the process of   developing your capacity for peace.

Regardless of how stable a given region may appear, the potential for peace to be disrupted is constant. As such, our capacity to protect and maintain peace in the face of conflict is essential, leading to the idea that peace is a process. While peace may never be a destination we arrive at completely, by becoming competent at maintaining peace, a community can consistently reduce the likelihood of violent conflict.

e.g. If a conflict falls along religious lines, the existence of each religion and their differing values will always be present in that society. This has the potential to cause friction and small scale conflict every day. Viewing peace as something we constantly work towards, therefore, would help this society prevent these conflicts from developing and becoming violent.

#2 Positive peace

Peace is the ability to maintain social cohesion and have positive interactions.

Positive peace is the presence of attitudes, institutions, and social structures that are able to sustain peace and reduce harmful conflict. This type of peace is essential, as it acts as the buffer protecting negative peace. Without a strong positive peace, any number of challenges can arise that may produce fear of harm and the experience of harm. Positive peace is a way of putting peace as a process into practice.

e.g. The presence of strong democratic values are a form of positive peace, as they mean that the peaceful transition of power is likely to occur in a society that votes for new leadership.

#3 Structural peace (justice)

Peace is having justice. 

Structural peace is the systemic way that an individual or group’s access to essential needs and freedom from violence are kept equitable. In a society where a particular group has reduced access to social services or individual rights, for instance, their relative structural peace or justice is reduced. They may not experience physical violence directly, but their perceived or experienced lack of justice will result in reduced peace.

e.g., After years of activism, racial tensions in a particular region may have been radically reduced. However, their government may still have active laws that entrench racial discrimination. Until these are dismantled, it can be harder for racialized groups to achieve structural peace. This is can be true even with the public support and a lack of physical violence.

#4 Negative peace

Peace is being free from the experience or fear of negative conflict and harm.

Negative peace refers to the absence of war and violent conflict. This version of peace is commonly cited in public discussions as it is the most obvious when it is missing. However, “violence” in this case is another nuanced word. It is defined by the World Health Organization as the intentional use or threat of force that is able to result in harm (physical, mental, or otherwise) of a person or group of people. This type of violence can be direct (e.g., a physical act of violence). It can be structural (e.g., taking away someone’s access to education and healthcare). Or, it

can be cultural (e.g., acceptance of a racist ideology among a given community). When an act of violence like this occurs, it is clear that the level of peace has been reduced.

e.g. When government security forces consistently use excessive force on the general public, negative peace has been lost.

#5 Peace as a feeling, experience, and outcome

Peace is   a feeling, experience, and an outcome. 

Considering the types of peace discussed above, we can see how peace is simultaneously a feeling, experience, and outcome. Peace can be a feeling if someone feels that their historical mistreatment has not been fully reconciled. Or that the truth of a conflict has not been established. Peace can be an experience when someone cannot fully participate in society, even without experiencing physical violence or threat of harm. Peace can be an outcome if after a period of violent conflict a ceasefire is agreed to and respected. In each case an example of peace has been found, but a more complete peace may not have been achieved.

Understanding that peace can be seen as a feeling as well as an actual experience or destination is important. This difference can explain why a seemingly stable region may actually have deep unrest under the surface. If a population feels they are experiencing a harm or injustice, this must be addressed. When a population is experiencing limited access to social services and freedoms, this must be addressed. If a population has been experiencing violent conflict, this must be addressed.

Examples of Peace Seeking in Political Conflicts

Case study #1: israel-palestine.

A 2020 study on Israelis and Palestinians highlighted differing perceptions of peace between high-power and low-power groups. Jewish-Israelis, seen as high-power, were more likely to view peace as connected to harmonious relationships ( positive peace ), while Palestinians, considered low-power, were more likely prioritize justice ( structural peace ). Both groups agreeing on peace as the absence of war and violence ( negative peace ). However, their view of what long lasting peace would involve also influenced their preferences for conflict resolution methods. It also shaped whether they favoured a Two-State Solution or One-State Solution.

Case Study #2: Bosnia and Herzegovina

A 2009 analysis of post-conflict peacebuilding in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) argues that there had been no reconciliation or restoration of relationships ( positive peace ) in BiH, only the absence of violence ( negative peace ). For this negative peace to turn into positive peace, there needs to be greater contact between the interethnic groups, as well as agreement on the core truths behind the conflict.

How to Understand Peace and Conflict

To understand global conflicts, ask the following questions:

  • What versions of peace are being disrupted?
  • What kinds of peace is being pursued?
  • What kinds of tools or changes could be made to manage the conflict that is disrupting peace?

For example, following the ongoing conflict in Israel-Gaza, what kinds of peace are the populations of each side calling for? Is the focus an immediate ceasefire? Are they looking for institutional reform? Has there been a call for intergroup dialogues and cooperative programs?

To understand how your own experience with conflicts, ask yourself the following questions:

  • How is peace understood by those around me? How might I be supporting/disrupting other people’s peace?
  • What political values do I hold that might support/disrupt peace in my community?
  • How does this definition of peace relate to your lived experience in places like work or school?
  • How can you produce peace for those you come into contact with on a day-to-day basis?

Where To Learn More About Peace

Learn more about peace and ways of pursuing peace with these resources:

  • Video breakdown of Johan Galtung’s formative work on negative and positive peace
  • The Council of Europe’s article on conceptions of peace and violence
  • Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies article on how strategic peacebuilding can develop different kinds of peace
  • Written article on the different philosophical approaches to understanding peace
  • The United States Institute of Peace blog has many breakdowns of ongoing conflicts and how peace is being pursued within them

English Summary

Peace Essay in English

A war cannot achieve what peace can. The forces of peace can rule over ignorance and superstition, over illiteracy and immorality, over disease and physical suffering over poverty and governmental oppression. The conquests of peace are nonviolent and bloodless. They cause no grief to humanity and do not donate life or property.

War causes streams of blood and untold havoc. Only the victories of peace leave no maimed limbs or mutilated bodies, no ruined cities or searched fields. Even a superficial glance at the course of the two world wars will tell us that their victories were gained at an incalculable cost. The triumph of the First World War proved to be of a short duration.

The victory itself sowed, in fact, the seeds of the Second World War. Who knows that the victory of World War-II may also prove to be of equally short duration and a third global war may even now be in the offings.

The victories of peace, however, are everlasting. They do not rankle in the mind of any nation and their fruits are enjoyed by all people. The example is the occupation of Germany and Japan by the forces of the Allied countries. If the Axis Powers had won the war, they would have exploited the Allies in the same, if not in a worse way.

Thus victory of war is gained at a heavy cost of life, and also implies the annexation and enslavement of many territories and the exploitation of many more. The victories of peace, on the contrary, involve no butchery of human beings and are, besides, of value to the entire world.

Only peace can bring about social reforms. During the war, men are too busy in militaristic activities to think of social improvement. It is only during peace that a literacy campaign can be stated that the standard of living of the masses can be raised, that better houses can be built for the poor, that more schools and colleges can be opened, that prisons can be reformed, that crime can be effectively checked.

Even the proper working of democracy itself is possible only in times of peace. There can be no elections, no government of the people when a country is in the throes of war. Peace promotes democracy. In short, it is during peace that a general improvement is possible in cleanliness and decency, in refinement and taste, in habits and morals, in manners and speech.

In peace, too, lies the opportunity for sports, for horse- racing, skiing, tennis, cricket, football and hockey tournaments and athletic contests of all kinds. It is often said in favour of the war that it brings out the best in man by creating an opportunity for human beings to display their great powers of endurance, their courage their capacity for self-sacrifice and their patriotism.

This is true enough in times of peace, people tend to become lethargic and indolent. Too much ease bagels idleness and an indifference to work. But to applaud war because it stimulates men into activity would really be preposterous. So grim are the horrors of war and so devastating its effects that no defence of it on any ground whatsoever is possible.

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Peace: A Very Short Introduction

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2 Peace in history

  • Published: November 2014
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‘Peace in history’ considers the significance of violence for contemporary international relations by looking at different forms and key dimensions of peace in history. A common historical belief is that humanity is unable to fulfil its potential without peace. As well as there being a ‘will to power’ there is also a ‘will to peace’. There will always be a need for conflict and a need for peace. The historic evolution of peace has moved from a negative and narrow version to a positive and broad notion of peace. It has evolved as an aspiration and a fact, emerging from alliances, social movements, and institutions as well as political, social, and economic philosophical thinking.

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Essay on War and Peace

Students are often asked to write an essay on War and Peace in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on War and Peace

Understanding war and peace.

War and peace are two sides of the same coin, representing conflict and harmony respectively. War often arises from disagreements, leading to violence and destruction. On the other hand, peace symbolizes tranquility, unity, and cooperation.

The Impact of War

War can cause immense suffering and loss. It destroys homes, breaks families, and causes physical and emotional pain. Moreover, it can lead to economic instability and environmental damage, affecting future generations.

The Importance of Peace

Peace is essential for the well-being of individuals and societies. It fosters growth, prosperity, and happiness. Peace encourages dialogue, understanding, and mutual respect, helping to resolve conflicts peacefully.

250 Words Essay on War and Peace

Introduction.

War and peace, two contrasting states, have shaped human civilization, politics, and cultural identity. The dichotomy between these two conditions is not merely a matter of physical conflict or tranquility but extends to philosophical, psychological, and ethical dimensions.

War: A Double-Edged Sword

War, often perceived as destructive, has paradoxically been a catalyst for some societal advancements. Technological innovations, political shifts, and social change have all been byproducts of war. However, the cost of these “benefits” is immense, leading to loss of life, displacement, and socioeconomic upheavals.

The Necessity of Peace

Peace, on the other hand, is a state of harmony and cooperation, conducive to prosperity, growth, and human development. It fosters an environment where creativity, innovation, and collaboration can thrive. Peace is not merely the absence of war but also the presence of justice and equality, which are fundamental for sustainable development.

Striking a Balance

The challenge lies in striking a balance between the pursuit of peace and the inevitability of war. This balance is not about accepting war as a necessary evil, but about understanding its causes and working towards preventing them. Peacebuilding efforts should focus on addressing root causes of conflict, like inequality and injustice, and promoting dialogue, understanding, and cooperation.

In conclusion, the complex relationship between war and peace is a reflection of the human condition. Striving for peace while understanding the realities of war is a delicate but necessary balance we must achieve. It is through this equilibrium that we can hope to progress as a society, ensuring a better future for generations to come.

500 Words Essay on War and Peace

War and peace are two polar opposites, yet they are inextricably linked in the complex tapestry of human history. They represent the dual nature of humanity: our capacity for both destruction and harmony. This essay explores the intricate relationship between war and peace, the impacts they have on societies, and the philosophical perspectives that underpin both.

The Dualism of War and Peace

War and peace are not merely states of conflict and tranquility, but rather manifestations of human nature and societal structures. War, in its essence, is a reflection of our primal instincts for survival, dominance, and territoriality. It exposes the darker side of humanity, where violence and power struggles prevail. Conversely, peace symbolizes our capacity for cooperation, empathy, and mutual understanding. It showcases the brighter side of humanity, where dialogue and diplomacy reign.

Impacts of War and Peace

The impacts of war and peace are profound and far-reaching. War, while destructive, has often catalyzed technological advancement and societal change. The World Wars, for instance, led to the development of nuclear technology and the establishment of international bodies like the United Nations. However, the cost of war is immense, leading to loss of life, economic devastation, and psychological trauma.

On the other hand, peace allows societies to flourish. It fosters economic growth, social development, and cultural exchange. Yet, peace is not merely the absence of war. It requires active effort to maintain social justice, equality, and mutual respect among diverse groups.

Philosophical Perspectives

War and peace have been subjects of philosophical debate for centuries. Realists argue that war is an inevitable part of human nature and international relations, while idealists contend that peace can be achieved through international cooperation and diplomacy.

Philosophers like Thomas Hobbes viewed humans as naturally combative, necessitating strong governance to maintain peace. Conversely, Immanuel Kant argued for ‘Perpetual Peace’ through democratic governance and international cooperation. These differing viewpoints reflect the complexity of war and peace, and the ongoing struggle to reconcile our violent instincts with our aspirations for a peaceful world.

In conclusion, war and peace are multifaceted concepts that reveal much about the human condition. Understanding their dynamics is crucial to shaping a world that leans towards peace, even as it acknowledges the realities of war. The challenge lies in mitigating the triggers of war and nurturing the conditions for peace. It is a task that requires not just political and diplomatic effort, but also a deep introspection into our collective values and aspirations.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

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  • Essay on War and Its Effects
  • Essay on Kargil War
  • Essay on Disadvantages of War

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American Diplomacy Est 1996

Insight and Analysis from Foreign Affairs Practitioners and Scholars

Established 1996 • Raymond F. Smith, Editor

short essay about peace

Winning the War for Peace, Justice and Prosperity: A Vision

In 1946, military analyst Lee Yuri (李浴日) of China pointed out that this dilemma may arise from the practice of a military doctrine that is not based on saving people, but on killing people. When a war does not end in justice for all, another battle erupts soon afterward. He contended that the world needs to practice a military doctrine that seeks to save people and to provide justice to all. He named this practice a “Military for Mankind” in his book On Victories 1 .

In this essay we first elaborate on the concept of Military for Mankind, which we broaden to include government and business. The concept of fighting a War of Peace, Justice and Prosperity is described in his book. Because justice is the key accomplishment of the War, we abbreviate it as the War of Justice. Ten precepts to practice “Military, Government and Business for Mankind” and to win a War of Justice are constructed from the book On Victories . We then examine what the world has right and wrong during the last two centuries from the perspective of these precepts.

The essay concludes with a list of recommendations for the leaders of the world to consider. The implementation of these recommendations might well lead to winning the War of Justice for the people of the world and thereby to achieving peace, justice and prosperity for all.

II. Military for Mankind . Lee Yuri emphasized the importance of the concept of Military for Mankind:

“The wars fought in 20th Century have been directed more toward a military doctrine of killing people and conquering enemies. Scientific advances have further exaggerated this problem, inasmuch as nuclear weapons are able to kill people by the millions. If military actions are allowed to intensify in this direction, the world will be destroyed and mankind will vanish from this planet.

Today, we must correct this wrongful “military doctrine” and establish one that has been devised to fight wars with the goal of saving people and achieving justice and prosperity for all. This doctrine and its practice will be termed “Military for Mankind” and the war to which it will apply will be termed the War of Peace, Justice and Prosperity.

The Chinese military doctrine developed 25 centuries ago was based on saving people. This doctrine must be reestablished throughout the world.”

Because we are currently engaged in a total war, we need to broaden “Military for Mankind” to “Military, Government and Business for Mankind”. In all countries, the military is a part of the government. For some countries, the country may own most of the businesses. This broadening of the military doctrine facilitates the examination of how each of the three components helps to win the War of Justice.

Government for Mankind was a concept that Confucius examined fully. This concept was adapted by many dynasties to manage the government of China throughout history.

III. War of Peace, Justice and Prosperity . In his classic book, On Wars, Clausewitz deals with the fighting of a battle. He explicitly states that the goal in fighting a battle or a war is to be established by the leader of the government. If the leader establishes the goal as peace, justice and prosperity, his generals must practice Military for Mankind and win the War of Justice for his country. Thus, what we are doing is placing the concept of Military for Mankind into a framework that can be used to analyze wars being fought and their consequences for peace, justice and prosperity.

The War of Justice was examined by Mencius in China. At about the same time, Socrates discussed the moral concept of Good and Justice, and the meaning of justice (i.e., What is Justice?). He spoke about the “medicine of Justice”. In essence, the concept of the War of Justice has long existed in both the Western and Eastern worlds.

The world won World War II in Europe. All nations that were involved there received justice. Germany has long re-emerged as a major power of the world. Peace and prosperity were gained by many nations. Thus, it is appropriate to say that the world won the European War of Justice. On the other hand, no justice was given to many Asian countries that were invaded by the Japan Empire, even if they were allies of the US. As a result, disputes have developed in Asia. Their elevation to a trade war is imminent.

The key point in winning the War of Justice is whether the people (of allies and enemies) gain justice. This is to say that fighting the War of Justice and the actions occurring during and after the battle should respect human life and human rights. In this way, the people will have no intention or desire to fight another war. On the other hand, the War of Justice should be fought without mercy against warlords, drug lords, and terrorist leaders.   IV. Ten Precepts on Military for Mankind and War of Justice. On Victories contains these five books written by Lee Yuri:

  • Analysis of Sun Zi’s Art of War
  • The Essence of War Principles by Clausewitz
  • Sun Yat-sen’s Principles of Revolution
  • Essays on Sun Zi’s Art of War
  • Essays on Military Doctrines.

He urged soldiers and commanders to study these books. For a country to be strong and to prosper, its politicians and government leaders should practice the principles stipulated in On Victories on all aspects of government and the conduct of war. Because the war is a people’s war, Lee Yuri expected the also the people to read On Victories .

Instead of expecting readers to read that book of 600,000 Chinese words, I have summarized them in the following 10 precepts for your review.

  • What is necessary to win the War of Justice :

This requirement was given by Sun Zi in Chapter 1 on Planning for War and interpreted by Lee Yuri as “What is first required of us to win the war is dao 道. What is dao ? It is the good governance by the government leader and military commander. If the leader and commander practice dao , their citizens will be in complete accord with their leader. The people will follow the leader in the War of Justice with no regard to their lives, and undismayed by any danger. They will be imbued with a must win attitude, and fight for their country fearlessly in all situations.“ This precept also implies that if a government does not practice dao , the citizens will not fight for that government.

  • Winning the enemy by the War of Justice .

Victory in the War of Justice requires that the people of the enemy have a new government that practices dao . If you have no plan to build this new government of dao , then you are not ready to fight the War of Justice. This strategy can also be described as subduing your enemy with justice so that he becomes your friend. If you should win the war without a battle, the rationale for this precept becomes compatible to the saying of Sun Zi that subduing your enemy without battle is of supreme excellence. The way to “subdue” your enemy is to build a government of dao to serve the enemy’s people or to convert the existing government to one that practices dao for its people. Prevailing should not be achieved by killing only.

  • The forms of war :

The war can be a water cannon fight, a crusader war, a revolutionary war, a conventional war, a prolonged war, a guerrilla war, a propaganda war, a psychological war, a media war, a legal war, a nuclear war, a cold war, an ideal or absolute war, a deterrent war, a war of poverty, a trade war, a war against self-destruction or, finally, a War of Justice. Clausewitz identified this  expanded list of wars The world has suffered through or fought all of these wars, except completion of the last war. It is also appropriate to suggest that a war of poverty and a trade war can be identified as part of a War of Justice. Some of these war forms will be elaborated later. In order to win the battle of these wars, Clausewitz believed that it was important that the commander conducts a scientific analysis of the battle and that the government leader sets the objective of the battle and provides the commander with the resources and authority necessary to execute the battle. The form of the war can affect the specific objectives to be established and the time and timing to fight the war.

  • The principle to win the war : This principle that was enunciated by Sun Zi is interpreted by Lee Yuri as “If you (the leader and the commander) know your situation and that of your enemy, you will not be endangered in hundred battles. If you do not know the situation of your enemy but only yours, you may win or lose with no certainty in the outcome of the war. Lastly, if you know neither, you will lose every battle.” (Knowing means that you know all aspects of the countries fighting the war: how to fight the battle, what you should and can do during the battle, what is the likely war casualty, can you definitely win the war, and how you can achieve lasting peace after battle victory has been achieved?)
  • The need for people to know the Art of War :  Lee Yuri said, “Whether you are strong or weak, it all depends on the thrifty of the Art of War.” He also said, “Wars will be with us for centuries. The world of today has wars. We must promote “Military for Mankind” and educate the people in the right Art of War. The Art of War is the foundation of military might, and the war knowledge of the people, military generals and government leaders is the Great Wall of the country”.
  • The essence of fighting any war : “In today’s world, if you can fight, you will persevere. If you cannot fight, you will die,” Sun Yat-sen said. The word “fight” is interpreted as “win in wars against enemy within or without”. Lee Yuri further stated that a government without dao, corrupted officers and greedy people are internal enemies that can cause a country to self-destruct or die.
  • The virtues of leaders and commanders : Sun Zi said, “A leader or a commander must have these five virtues: wisdom, honesty, humanity, courage, and discipline.” Lee Yuri expanded on this with “The wisdom is the device of a good plan that ensures success. With honesty, a leader can mete out appropriate awards and penalties and make his administration, especially its financial operation, transparent. With humanity, he cares for his soldiers, his people and his enemy. With courage, he remains calm in the face of adversity and leads the fight. With discipline , he is solemn, respectful and strict in operation of the military and government.” Lee Yuri pointed out in his book, On Victories, that President Roosevelt, President Truman, General and President Eisenhower, General Marshall and General MacArthur had these leadership characteristics and were visionaries.
  • The time to fight the war : This was uttered by Sun Zi and interpreted by Lee Yuri as “The visionary leader lays his plans well before sending his troop to fight. The good and kind commander makes his plans for a short battle, a quick war and a complete victory.” Sun Zi also said, “The leader does not moves his troops unless he sees an advantage to his country; does not use his troops unless there is victory; and does not send his troop to fight unless his country is in peril.” The basic principle of establishing the time to fight and win must be firmly adhered to by the leader and commander.
  • The basis of winning the battle : Sun Zi said, “A skillful commander first makes his army invincible. When he discovers an enemy’s weakness, he seizes the opportunity, attacks swiftly, and spares nothing to defeat his enemy.” Sun Zi then summed up this point as “A commander who commands his troop, not only cultivates his dao, but also preserves the integrity of his military system. He will take advantage of an enemy’s weakness and ensure victory.” Earlier, Sun Zi described the military system as the organizations, rules and supports in getting the military operational. Similar logic should be applied to the leader of the government and the operation of his governmental system.
  • The benefit of victory : In contrast to counting how many people you killed and how many countries you colonized, winning the War of Justice should give you peace for centuries and justice and prosperity for all. This precept emphasizes the importance of winning at all three fronts: peace, justice and prosperity. The war has not ended if we win at only one or two fronts. A corollary of this precept is to fight no war that has the potential to bankrupt yourself.

Because the fighting power of the world’s major powers is so superior, winning a battle over a lesser country is a foregone conclusion. As a result, we differentiate the doctrine for Military for Mankind and War of Justice from the conventional doctrine on military and government operation by emphasizing the following factors:

1. Justice for all people, but without mercy for warlords, drug lords, and terrorism lords. 2. Winning the hearts of the people following the battle 3. The essential for a government to practice dao , i.e., to have good governance.

V. On the World. In the last three decades, international exports increased at a rate of about 9% a year or about 12-fold. The improvement in productivity, removal of trade and investment barriers, growth of international and national markets, and innovation and development of high-tech and information systems have contributed to this dramatic increase. However, despite these successes, financial crises still develop. Many countries are fighting for resources and battling for trading advantage. People are suffering as a result of high unemployment and/or lack of food and medicine.

Will we have peace, justice and prosperity for the world in 20 years? Based on the outcome of the wars fought during the last 20 years, the answer may be negative. However, the progress in world affairs by the major powers gives us hope that we will have a yes answer.

Before elaborating more on the yes or no issue, we will examine from the perspective of Military for Mankind and War of Justice the world’s current conditions, discuss the world order, and address the root cause of wars and financial crises. After further examination of China’s situation and that of the USA and the relationship between the two countries, we have five recommendations for the world to act on.

Table 1 contains six groups of data that characterize the strengths and weaknesses of four countries. The first group is the resources that the four countries have. Their productivities are appeared as the second group. The third group is the debt owed by governments. The investment by these countries in their military operation is shown as the fourth group. The last two groups are data of the health of their people and some indices characterizing the corruption of government operations.

Table 1. Resources, productivity, debt, military expenditures, health and corruption of four countries.

* The conversion is calculated at assumed values of $100 per barrel and $4 per 1,000 cubic feet. ** The first number is years of remaining reserves based on oil reserves. The number in parenthesis is the number of years increased by the shale reserves if consumption remains at the same rate. *** The public debt of USA does not include the debt $5T owed to governmental agencies such as Social Security Trust Funds. Foreign entities own $5.72T of the $12.1T public debt; The Federal Reserve owns $1.79T, State and Local governments own $0.7T; and private entities and individuals own $3.89T. The public debt of China includes $2T that is incurred by provincial and local governments. **** www.transparency.org.

VI. New World Order. The recent signing of a chemical weapon agreement with Syria and a nuclear weapon agreement with Iran by six major powers — USA, China, Russia, Great Britain, France and Germany — certainly indicate the emergence of a new order of the world’s powerful countries. Among these six countries, USA is clearly a superpower . This is due to the Americans’good citizenship; its highly regarded functional legislatures; its exceptional legal system; the strength of America’s democratic government; the superiority of its armed forces; its No. 1 status in GDP; innovation, business practice and business size; and the abundance of its natural resources. With its present, new leadership, China’s GDP will grow rapidly, the corruption will be controlled and the country will progressively move from a developing country to a developed country. Then, China may advance to second rank among world powers.

Five of these major powers have nuclear armaments. They understand well the disastrous effect on the world of a nuclear war. The possibility of nuclear wars among the six major powers is nil.

The relationhip of Russia and China to the four other major powers is no longer like that to the Soviet Union led by Joseph Stalin or the China led by Mao Zedong. Instead, the six major powers are working together to reach an agreement with Iran for a reduction of its nuclear stockpile. Although this agreement is only the first step towards ensuring that Iran will not possess nuclear weapon, the signing of theagreement reflects a major breakthrough by the six major powers in that they are working together first to impose economic and financial sanctions on Iran and then to negotiate a compromise for all parties. Hopefully there will be no nuclear threat to Israel and the world by Iran and Iran will revise its government operation so that it will no longer be regarded as a state that sponsors terrorism.

The second good news item is that USA, Russia and Syria have worked out an agreement to free Syria of its chemical weapons. At present, all chemical weapons have been identified and ships that are capable of destroying the weapons are on their way to Syria. The destruction of all Syrian chemical weapons that were sold to that country by Western powers will relieve Israel and the world of one key security concern about Syria. On the other hand and based on the outcome of the Iraq and Afghanistan war, the approach taken by the USA to resolve the conflict between the Syrian government and its opposition forces will not succeed in building a Syrian government that can govern the Syrians well. It is not likely that USA will be fighting a Syria war, but the human suffering of Syrians caused by a Syria war is simply not acceptable. A new way to deal with the Syrian conflict must be developed jointly by the USA and Russia.

All other countries of the world will be separated into those countries that are civilized and those that are uncivilized. A civilized country works within international laws. It has demonstrations that can be regarded as peaceful. Some have high unemployment and operate with huge government deficits. These countries do not sponsor terrorism. Their legislators and government officials are elected by a majority of their citizens or by a selected group.

We will use the China throughout her Century of Humiliation as an illustration of an uncivilized country. During that period (up to 1949), internal turmoil was produced by government corruption and/or the greed of warlords. China suffered and many people died. Mentioned in his 1932 book The Japanese Prison in Shanghai War, Lee Yuri told his fellow inmates that the turmoil and corruption that were happening in China would destine China to extinction. Several countries (excluding the USA) took advantage of China’s situation to compound further the atrocities of killing or looting in China.

The uncivilized countries are usually governed by a dictator or tyrant. As a way to protect his interests within his country, the dictator may use his power and resource to export terrorism to the world. Iraq was such a state.

VII. Corruption and Greed . The root cause of most world problems is the corruption of some officials and greed of some people. Three incidents or crises will be examined to support this reasoning. The first is the financial crisis of 2008, the financial loss and human suffering of which are given in Table 2.  In contrast to the second incident — the Iraq and Afghanistan War — the financial loss of 2008 crisis was about eight times the financial cost of the War. The human suffering of the first incident is in the form of unemployment and company bankruptcies, whereas that of the second incident is given in numbers of military deaths and wounded personnel.

Table 2. Cost and Suffering of Three American Crises or Wars.

* The first number is the sum of row 4 and 5 of Table 3 on military deaths and wounded personnel. The second number does not include the deaths of terrorists and people wounded by, or getting cancer through, the Attack.

The financial crisis of 2008 resulted first from the greed of some financial executives who sought more commissions by granting mortgages to unqualified home buyers. At the same time, the home buyers hoped to be enriched by inflation and committed themselves to purchase homes that they could not afford. Meanwhile, some industries were overburdened by labor costs and became uncompetitive. Unable to survive the financial crisis, many companies declared bankruptcy and were reorganized subsequently. Fortunately, wise decisions made by the governments and people and the correction of the financial system imposed by governments enabled many banks and companies to recover. One noticeable example was the return of General Motor to its position as the leading automobile manufacturer in the United States. The description of the cause of the 2008 financial crisis certainly supports the suggestion that our government and laws could not restrain people’s greed. As a result of this failure, there were enormous financial losses and unspeakable human suffering.

The Iraq and Afghanistan war is the response of USA to the third incident which resulted from terrorists’ greed for revenge. These two wars were made under an unwise decision (i.e. USA can win easily). The estimated cost of the war is given in a report by Linda Bilmes and Joseph E. Stiglitz. This report states, “The fresh calculation — which includes the cost of spiraling veterans’ care bills and the future interest on war loans — paints a grim picture of how America’s future at home and abroad has been mortgaged to the two conflicts entered into by George W Bush in 2001 and 2003.” The report’s stark conclusion is, “There will be no peace dividend and the legacy of Iraq and Afghanistan Wars will be costs that persist for decades.” The projection can be much grimmer if another Saddam Hussein emerges in Iraq and the Taliban retakes Afghanistan.

Corruption usually means the acceptance of bribes by government officials. From the perspective of Military for Mankind, Government and Business and War of Peace, Justice , and prosperity; corruption means these seven crimes or unjust practices:

  • Taking bribes,
  • Obtaining votes by unethical means to get elected (for the purpose of getting more money or power),
  • Using governing power beyond the ordinary (as exemplified by the power grabbing of Mao during The Cultural Revolution),
  • Wasting government funds (as in the building of a bridge to a deserted island),
  • Gouging customers for profit (as in the use of patent law or monopoly position to set up unjust pricing),
  • Polluting air, land and sea for more profit,
  • Avoiding or evading fair taxation (as exemplified by the move of a company to a country that has no corporation tax).

With this broadened definition of corruption, two issues should be addressed. In many countries, executives are granted lavish bonuses whether or not they improve their company’s performance. In other countries, government officials who get important projects done well and at an optimum cost are not rewarded with a bonus. As a result, accepting bribes becomes a necessity for them to have a living standard that is comparable to those who receive a bonus. The second issue is for the companies to not use the loopholes in international laws and the legal protection of domestic laws to earn extraordinary profits and not pay a fair share of taxes. If the companies are conducting themselves properly in their business practices, people will have more money to invest in their country and the country will have more money to deal with the problem of overspending.

VIII. On the United States of America. “In the twentieth century, no country has influenced international relations as decisively and, at the same time, as ambivalently as the United States. No society has more firmly insisted on the inadmissibility of intervention in domestic affairs of other states, or more passionately asserted that its own values were universally applicable.“ This is a statement that was made by Kissinger in his book, Diplomacy .

How successful is the U.S. ambivalence and passion? Table 3 gives the casualties that the USA has suffered in wars since World War II. In World War II, U.S. casualties were high. If it were not for this U.S. sacrifice and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the world would not be as good and peaceful as it is today.

Table. 3. American casualties in wars during the last sixty years (source: Wikipedia).

* The U.S. casualties in the Pacific Theater were about 67% of those listed.

During World War II in the Pacific Theater, the atrocities committed by the evil Japanese Empire to Asian countries were horrendous. As an example, 40 million Chinese persons were killed in that war. The reparation established by the San Francisco Peace Treaty merely required Japan to return the property that it had looted from China. Injustice was perpetrated on China by the signers of the Treaty.

The Korean War may be described as stagnant. The good news is that we have a strong South Korea that practices dao and that China is helping the world to change the behavior of North Korea. Although the U.S. retreated hastily from South Vietnam, Vietnam is changing by itself. Overall, we may say that the sacrifice of the U.S. in these two wars has been somewhat justified.

After we won the battles for Iraq and Afghanistan, we built up the world’s two most corrupt governments through the democratic model of U.S. The U.S. sacrifice did not end with a halt to the killings between the Sunnis and Shiites of Iraq. As our troops withdraw from Afghanistan, the Taliban is poised to overrun the current government.

Hopefully, the leaders of the U.S. can appreciate three lessons of these two wars. The first is that the people of Iraq and Afghanistan differ from Americans. What is important to us may not be important to them. When we apply our system and/or passion to them, the government that is built up may not function in the way that we expect. Second, we need to do a better job of Precept 4, i.e., knowing yourself and the enemy. We knew that we could win the battle for Iraq, but did not know that we could not establish a good Iraqi government. Knowing how to win a battle that is not a War of Justice as defined by Precept 2, is not a sufficient reason for the U.S. to send its generals, men and women into harm’s way to do an impossible job. Thirdly, USA did not select the right timing to fight the war (Precept 8). If the economic sanction were extended for a few years, Saddam Hussein might surrender and USA would win the battle without a fight.

The two world’s foremost reserve currencies are the U.S. dollar (62%) and the Euro (24%). Economist Paul Samuelson and others have maintained that the overseas demand for the dollars enables the United States to maintain persistent trade deficits without causing the value of dollar to depreciate or the flow of trade to readjust. This monetary advantage of the USA is further enhanced by the country’s superpower so that the U.S. treasury bonds become the vehicle into which foreign countries invest their export/import surplus.

The Federal Reserve has set the interest rate at an unprecedented low level to promote economy recovery from the 2008 financial crisis. Such an interest rate significantly lowers the U.S. government’s burden of paying interest on the public debt.

Samuelson stated in 2005 that, in some uncertain future period, these pressures (the continuous accumulation of trade deficits, the printing of paper money, the increase in public debt, and an increase in interest rate) would precipitate a run against the U.S. dollar with serious global financial consequences.

If the U.S. does default on its public debt, will that make the U.S. government one of poor governance (i.e., the violation of Precept 1)? However, a better question to ask is whether we should do something now to reduce the pressures or wait until bankruptcy before we reorganize the U.S. back into its status as the world’s superpower. The revamping of General Motor suggests that the U.S. and Americans will succeed in the reorganization.

The world has many conflicts. Another world financial crisis is on the horizon. One important thing for the U.S. to consider is what changes in our foreign and domestic policy we should make so that we can still be the superpower and the country that works for peace, justice and prosperity throughout the world.

IX. On China “The Chinese economy displays both unmatched dynamism and unrivaled complexity. Since the early 1980s, China has consistently had the most rapidly growing economy on earth, sustaining an average annual growth rate of 10% from 1978 through 2005.“ This is a 2006 assessment of China by Barry Naughton in his book The Chinese Economy . The China’s GDP in 2013 is expected to grow to $9.16 trillion, which is much higher than the $5.8 trillion GDP of Japan. In January of 2014 it was reported that China may already have edged out USA as the country that has the highest level of trade of all countries. Most importantly, the Chinese now know that they must depend on growth in their domestic market to ensure that the dynamic growth of their economy continues.

President Xi Jinping is the new leader of China. His China Dream is to make China rich with goodness. He also has a Military Dream, which is to make the armed forces of China strong and committed to winning the War of Justice for all people.

In China, a new leadership team is elected by party members about every 10 years. The election of leaders involves an elaborate process. The leaders so chosen are well prepared to do their jobs and each has a specific assignment.

Let us use the rise of Xi to the presidency of China to explain how the Chinese election works. First, his father was prosecuted during The Cultural Revolution. As a result, Xi was sent out to a poor county for reeducation. However, his father was released from prosecution and assumed an important role in the success of the market economy policy of Deng Xiaoping. Xi’s effective dealings with the people in that county and his hard work gained him admittance to Tsinghua University, a top ranking university in China. Before his rise to the upper echelon of the central government, he listened to the concerns of people and worked to resolve them. He worked diligently to attract foreign investment. Resources are allocated to support the growth of new foreign and domestic companies. Before he became president, he had cultivated an important leadership position in the military.

His China Dream really motivates all Chinese not only to become richer, but also to become good citizens. Even if the defense expenditures as a % of GDP remains at the current level (which is about one half of that of the USA), his Military Dream will narrow the gap in the number of weapons between USA and China. China’s success in the landing of Chang’e 3 on the moon certainly suggests that their technology or quality gap in military technology may be narrowing. If Xi can effectively resolve the problem of corruption, China will be a formidable opponent of the USA.

Let me offer six personal observations (derived from my contact with Chinese persons of various levels and my readings of Chinese news) for consideration by the readers:

  • Government Control. Practically speaking, the government owns all lands and most companies in China. Because of the abolishment of agriculture tax for all farmers, they will not be considered in this observation as persons working for the government. Accordingly, we can be assured that the workforce that is employed by the government will constitute a much larger percentage of the population than that of the other major world powers. As the government gains more experience in running the market of China, foreign companies that exporting goods to China may be asked to do more than selling their products to China and taking their profits out of the country.
  • Infrastructure. Everyone knows that infrastructure is being constructed in China at an unprecedented level. Its accomplishment in this regard is even more amazing as a country with the least corruption (according to the corruption index listed in Table 1) may not be able to do it at the quality and for the cost that China achieves.
  • Corruption . My merchant friends regard corruption in China as rampant. On the other hand, many foreign companies thrive without bribing officials and some companies, wanting to increase sales, got convicted by China for bribery.
  • Farmers around prospering cities. The farmers are taking extra job as small businessmen and earning a great deal of extra income.
  • No housing bubbles in robust cities. Many people there are betting for housings. In addition, the farmers are buying houses in cities so that their children can have a better education. The two top most priorities for Chinese families in China are owning a house and getting the best education for their children.
  • Education . Good and free education is available for every child. Children in remote areas are learning English and computer skills. Recognizing the moral bankruptcy subsequent to The Cultural Revolution and the rise of materialism following Modernization, schools are taking the lead to promote the teaching of Confucius, Mencius, and dao in order to give the future generations a moral anchor.
  • Research and Development. This is aggressively pursued as exemplified by the success in building a high speed railway system, sending a rover Chang’e-3 to the moon and making enormous progresses in biological science and engineering.

Three critical issues require our consideration:

  • The first is whether we want China to be a formidable friend of the USA.
  • Second, should we do everything in our (super)power to weaken China so that she will never be our opponent?
  • Third is whether USA, China, Britain, France, Germany and Russia should collaborate and become the maker of peace, justice and prosperity of the world.

Before we consider these issues, one thing that Precept 4 calls for is that we know Chinese and China. Martin Jacques said in his book, “Soon, China will rule the world”. If his “soon” means in the next 10 to 50 years, this statement is definitely not supported by the data given in Table. 1. However, he did point out that the West was ignorant of China and its culture. If the U.S. is ignorant in these aspects, can U.S. make objective assessments of and intelligent decisions on the three issues mentioned earlier?

Here is an example of how the new China conducts foreign policy and practices the for-mankind doctrine. By avoiding domestic political affairs and funding the construction of a pipeline system across Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan, China wins the friendship of these countries, stabilizes their economic and political conditions, and resolves China’s energy needs. Similarly China and India have improved their relations by signing a border agreement while China and Vietnam are working to resolve their dispute concerning the South China Sea.

As China’s economy was improving, Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao and the leaders before them made a significant investment to build up the educational system. The graduates are assuming important government positions. Many of them are committed to correcting past errors, such as the corruption of government officials, and leading their nation to new heights. These two Chinese leaders worked vigorously to establish a system that can eliminate corruption in government and greed in people.

With the rise of Xi to the presidency and Li Keqiang to the premiership of China, their determination to clean up the government, the threat that corruption may destabilize the Chinese government will disappear. China will have a strong and wise government to serve her citizens.

Many world events indicate that China is a major power for world peace. It is not the China of the 20th Century. China is destined to grow and be a country for mankind.

X. On Sino-American Relation . A good relationship began in 1784 as the “Empress of China” sailed to Canton, China. Washington signed a Sea Letter and sent a delegate with the hope that the Empress of China could open up a new pathway and a new market to bring new life to the newly formed USA. The Americans took gentian roots from the Appalachian Mountains and red and white wines to China. They brought back a great deal of Wuyi tea (Bohea) from Fujian and china, which generated a huge profit for the sponsors of the ship. One of the sponsors was Robert Morris, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Up to 1949, the USA was the friendliest of the “Imperialist” countries to China. During World War II, the USA provided a huge amount of supplies and materials with which China could fight the evil Japanese Empire. Many brave Americans came and risked their lives to help China fight the Sino-Japan War. Flying Tigers downed 2,600 Japanese airplanes. The Americans who lost their lives in the Pacific Theater as listed in Table 3 may have reduced Chinese casualties by tens of millions. Similarly the strong resistance of China to Japan’s invasion weakened Japanese capability to fight against MacArthur’s brazen island hopping assault. China should also be grateful to the USA and Great Britain for China being appointed as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council of the United Nations.

Unfortunately the ascendance of Stalin and Mao to power and the fighting of the Korean and Vietnam War degraded Sino-American relation to an adversarial relationship. The USA’s China policy became one of containment.

Fortunately, the establishment of a normal Sino-American relationship through Ping-Pong Diplomacy and trade between China and the outside world has increased rapidly. The granting of most favorable nation trade status to China by President Bill Clinton further increased trade between the USA and China.

On the other hand, the USA’s containment policy is still in effect as demonstrated by the military confrontations that have occurred in the Diaoyu Islands and the South China Sea. However, the improvement in submarines, the increased range of missiles, and the number of nuclear warheads of China make the containment policy obsolete.

The USA must have a new China policy so that confrontation will seldom be escalated into a battle with human casualties. Equally important is that the major powers should never think of a nuclear war as a means to destroy the other major powers.

The meeting of President Obama and Xi at Sunnylands, California is a good beginning. Their desire that the USA and China form a new major nation relationship is so important that the world would applaud it.

Americans do a great deal of good in the world. They also do things that are not good. Similar comments apply to the Chinese. If they do collaborate to resolve world conflicts peacefully (i.e., with minimal human casualties), then U.S.A, China and the world will have and enjoy a win-win-win situation.

XI. Recommendations. Some suggestions were made earlier for the two countries being assessed here. Five general recommendations are given below for consideration by all civilized countries:

  • On Corruption and Greed : The world should work together to reduce seven forms of corruption or greedy crimes described earlier. The United Nations needs to develop a body of international laws for use in prosecuting the crimes. Countries that are unwilling to enforce the laws should be excluded from world trade. Domestic laws should be amended or rewritten to reduce crimes of corruption within and without.
  • On International Collaboration : All countries — the major powers and lesser nations — should collaborate in world affairs and use trade, instead of deadly weapons, as a means to change a government to one of good governance. Human values and the suffering in each country differ. The killing of people should be the first issue to be addressed by collaborative effort. Changes to an existing government are less formidable than the formation of a new government that is free of corruption.
  • On the Prevention of Financial Crisis : The culprit in this crisis is corruption, government overspending, insufficient taxation, export import deficits, and low interest rates that are unsustainable. The government and the people must make some sacrifices to ensure that there will be no financial crisis and the associated economic human suffering for decades.
  • On Research : The world may run out of oil and gas in 20~30 years. We should invest in the research and technology necessary to deal with this issue. Investment needs to be made by the world on technologies that will lead to more energy, higher food production, and more practical medical technology so that energy, food and healthy people will be there to run the world when there is no longer any oil output from the ground.
  • On Education : The people need to be educated on what is Military, Government and Business for Mankind, why we fight the War of Justice , how to be a good citizen in a way to assure that our government does practice dao , what sacrifices are needed to assure effective government operation, and answers to other issues raised in this article. People must learn that greed, injustice and doing things only for their own self-interests are culprits that will destabilize their government and create wars among countries.

The tasks called for by the recommendations are being done by the world. We just reword them under the perspective of Military for Mankind, the War of Justice and a broadened definition of corruption to highlight the urgency for the world to carry out the tasks.

Corruption and financial crisis can cause a country to self-destruct. The USA and China should join forces in a war against self-destruction.

1. This book, others and essays written by Lee Yuri are on the website: www.leeyuri.org . Hard copies can be obtained with a donation.

American Diplomacy is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to American Diplomacy.

This book, others and essays written by Lee Yuri are on the website: www.leeyuri.org. Hard copies can be obtained with a donation.

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Immanuel Kant, Perpetual Peace: A Philosophic Sketch (1795)

Kant and the Birth of Modern Idealism

The classic source of modern idealism in international relations theory is Immanuel Kant’s 1795 essay “Perpetual Peace: A Philosophic Sketch.” There, the German philosopher (1724-1804) takes up the question of whether perpetual peace is the preserve of men in their graves. Answering in the negative, Kant delineates the conditions necessary for the establishment of perpetual peace among nations, argues that statesmen are morally obligated to seek those conditions, and assures us that those conditions will eventually obtain. He envisions the world slowly progressing toward a federation of independent republics at peace with one another.

In important ways, Kant’s “Perpetual Peace” constitutes a fundamental break with the tradition of modern realism begun by Machiavelli and Hobbes. Most important is Kant’s insistence that morality must guide foreign policy. Yet Kant does not return to pre-modern idealism. On the contrary, he follows and even radicalizes Hobbes’s characterization of the status quo as a state of nature. Insofar as his advocacy of a worldwide federation of states is animated by an aversion to this condition, one can say that Kant’s idealistic position emerges dialectically out of Hobbes’s realistic position. Indeed, Kant follows a path that emerges out of Hobbes’s thought, namely, escaping the state of nature among nations by means of a social contract. Furthermore, Kant’s prediction that perpetual peace can and will be realized is only a more intense expression of the hopefulness for human progress that marks modern thought from the beginning. Kant’s emphasis on the good that philosophers, if permitted to express themselves freely in public, can do betrays far greater confidence in the good of enlightenment than the pre-modern idealists ever had.

Preliminary Articles of a Perpetual Peace

Kant lays out six articles of perpetual peace, which together constitute the First Section of the essay. He proceeds, in the Second Section, to identify three definitive articles of perpetual peace. These articles are followed by a series of supplements and appendices. The distinction Kant draws between preliminary and definitive articles of perpetual peace makes clear from the outset that he regards the achievement of perpetual peace as a long, gradual process. As their name suggests, the preliminary articles are necessary but insufficient first steps toward that goal.

As Kant explains in his more systematic account of international relations in The Metaphysics of Morals , states, in their external relations with one another, exist in “a state of nature…hence in a condition of constant war” (53). Because there is no common legal authority to which it might appeal in this condition, a state, if it “believes that it has been injured by another state,” “is entitled to resort to violence” (56). Kant insists that even though no state can do injustice to another in this condition given that it is “devoid of right,” the condition is “in the highest degree unjust in itself.” Neighboring states are therefore “bound to abandon such a condition” in favor of “a federation of peoples in accordance with the idea of an original social contract, so that states will protect one another against external aggression while refraining from interference in one another’s internal disagreements” (54). The six preliminary articles of perpetual peace aim at producing the conditions under which such a federation can be formed. Adhering to them is the first thing that states must do in fulfilling the duty to abandon the state of nature.

The six preliminary articles are as follows.

  • No conclusion of peace shall be considered valid as such if it was made with a secret reservation of the material for a future war.
  • No independently existing state, whether it be large or small, may be acquired by another state by inheritance, exchange, purchase or gift.
  • Standing armies will gradually be abolished altogether.
  • No national debt shall be contracted in connection with the external affairs of the state.
  • No state shall forcibly interfere in the constitution and government of another state.
  • No state at war with another shall permit such acts of hostility as would make mutual confidence impossible during a future time of peace. Such acts would include the employment of assassins or poisoners, breach of agreements, the instigation of treason within the enemy state.

The first article seems to be a mere point of semantics. Since peace is by definition perpetual, whenever any party to an agreement ending hostilities makes a secret reservation of material for a future war, peace has not really been concluded. But this article actually gets at the heart of Kantian morality. As Kant explains in the second appendix to “Perpetual Peace,” “the transcendental formula of public right” consists in the proposition that “[a]ll actions affecting the rights of other human beings are wrong if their maxim is not compatible with their being made public” (126). This criterion of publicity derives from the more fundamental criterion of universality. As Kant writes in the Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals , the fundamental moral duty, or the categorical imperative, is to “[a]ct as if the maxim of your action were to become through your will a universal law of nature” (89). To make a secret reservation of the material for a future war in concluding a peace treaty would be to violate this duty. The secrecy of the action indicates that the actor could not will that all other states act similarly. The imperative of publicity and, more fundamentally, of universality shows that the Kantian statesmen cannot be concerned exclusively with the particular interest of his country. His pursuit of national interest must be regulated by the categorical imperative. The remaining articles are further examples of this.

Articles 2-5 are all aimed at obviating or mitigating the causes of war. Kant’s explanation of the second article, like the first, has a somewhat academic character. States are societies of men and, by definition, are not possessions to be transferred among princes. The practical significance of this point, however, is that the proprietary view that rulers take of their states causes conflict and, what is more, runs afoul of the rights of their subjects, who, in the characteristic formula of Kantian morality, ought to be regarded not as mere means but as ends in themselves (94).

The prohibition on standing armies contemplated by Article 3 similarly aims not only at diminishing the likelihood of war but also at protecting “the rights of man in one’s own person” (95). With respect to the former, Kant views the accumulation of relative power of any kind, whether military, financial, or diplomatic, as an incitement to one’s neighbors. In the state of nature, it amounts to a threat that triggers “the right of anticipatory attack ” (56). With respect to protecting the rights of man, Kant distinguishes citizens’ voluntarily undergoing periodic military training to secure themselves and their country from “the hiring of men to kill or to be killed,” which he likens to using men “as mere machines and instruments” (95). A “citizen,” he explains, “must always be regarded as a co-legislative member of the state (i.e., not just as a means, but also an end in himself), and he must therefore give his free consent through his representatives not only to the waging of war in general, but also to ever particular declaration of war” (55).

The fourth article is intended to combat a modern innovation, the credit system, that Kant worries will do away with one of the age-old limits on warfare, scarce resources. The fifth article’s prohibition on forcible interference in the domestic politics of another state precludes a whole category of warfare, one that, as we shall see, we might not expect Kant to rule out. The internal lawlessness of a state, Kant reasons, does not amount to an injury to other states. Those other states therefore have no justification for interfering. Here we see the concept of autonomy, so central to Kant’s understanding of the moral relations of human beings, applied to states.

While Kant accepts that wars will go on for some time, he insists, in the final preliminary article, that war be conducted in such a way that it does not make future peace impossible. The premise of this article is that, if peace is ever to be concluded between warring states, there must be some modicum of trust between those states even when they are at war with one another. For, should a peace treaty be concluded between states that do not trust one another to keep their word, that treaty will be a dead letter. Without mutual trust, each state will be secretly preparing for a resumption of hostilities. According to the first preliminary article, such an agreement does not even count as a genuine peace treaty. The bleak outcome of this dynamic, Kant warns, is “a war of extermination,” which would eliminate the possibility of perpetual peace (96). Kant claims that “diabolical arts” such as “the employment of assassins…or poisoners, breach of agreements, the instigation of treason… within the enemy state” and even “the employment of spies” “inevitably lead to such a war” and are therefore prohibited (96-97). They all destroy the conditions of trust among warring states and therewith the preconditions for perpetual peace.

Kant’s explanation of the sixth preliminary article surprisingly contains a statement on punitive war. He argues that the very concept of punitive warfare is incoherent on the grounds that “war is only a regrettable expedient for asserting one’s rights by force within a state of nature, where no court of justice is available to judge with legal authority” (96). In the absence of such a court, “neither party can be declared an unjust enemy, for this would presuppose a judge’s decision; only the outcome of the conflict, as in the case of a so-called ‘judgment of God’, can decide who is right” (96). While Kant does not make clear why he includes this critique of retributive war in his explanation of Article 6, the reason would seem to be that retributive war, like spying and the other diabolical arts, eliminates the possibility of mutual trust among warring states and gives rise to wars of extermination. Thus Kant indicates that not only immoralism in warfare but also moralism in warfare stands in the way of perpetual peace. In this respect, we find Kant in the camp of Hobbes and the modern realists over and against Thomas Aquinas and the Christian just war tradition. Kant’s idealism is modern and not medieval insofar as it rules out the only form of warfare that the medieval idealists approved of. This distinction sheds light on Kant’s understanding of the place of morality in international relations. He agrees with Hobbes that the state of war is amoral, but insists that there is a moral obligation to escape this state. War, for Kant, can be just in the sense that it is so limited as to hasten this escape but not in the sense that it entails the just prosecution of a wrongdoer.

In some ways Kant’s preliminary articles of peace reflect a moderate acceptance of the limits to achieving perpetual peace in the short term. These articles do not outlaw war, they merely regulate it. The designation “preliminary” indicates that adherence to these articles is merely a first step toward that goal. What is more, Kant allows states “ subjective latitude” in following Articles 2-4. There are circumstances, he admits, in which following these articles would hinder rather than promote the goal. But he is at pains to make clear that this allowance does not entail any compromise on the goal. “[A]ny delay,” he explains, “is permitted only as a means of avoiding a premature implementation which might frustrate the whole purpose of the article” (97). No end other than the establishment of perpetual peace can justify deviation from these articles.

Given this, one can only regard Kant’s position as entailing a radical reorientation of the ends of foreign policy. It is a reorientation from national ends to cosmopolitan ends. More fundamentally, it is, as Kant makes clear in the first appendix, a moral reorientation, from expediency to duty. Kant emphatically breaks with the Hobbesian outlook underlying modern realism, in which morality is conceived as “a general doctrine of expediency, i.e. a theory of the maxims by which one might select the most useful means of furthering one’s own advantage” (116). This is no morality at all, according to Kant. For the core of morality is duty, the fulfillment of which involves subordinating one’s own good to principle. Contra Hobbes, Kant insists that “all politics must bend the knee before right” (125). Kant takes particular exception to the “realistic” view that man cannot do what he ought to do, for example, the “man will never want to do what is necessary in order to attain the goal of eternal peace” (117). Our knowledge of human nature is too limited, in Kant’s view, to make such a prediction. We do not have sufficient grounds for abandoning the hope for perpetual peace or, in turn, the dutiful pursuit of perpetual peace. The “realistic” view must be combated not only because it is false but also because it is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If people are convinced that perpetual peace is impossible, then it will not come about.

Kant holds out as exemplary the “ moral politician , i.e., someone who conceives of the principles of political expediency in such a way that they can co-exist with morality” while condemning the “ political moralist , i.e. one who fashions his morality to suit his own advantage as a statesman” (118). The former makes it his “duty” to assure that “any faults which could not have been prevented…in the political constitution or in the relations between states…are corrected as soon as possible…even if selfish interests have to be sacrificed” (118). As in his description of the preliminary articles, Kant here concedes that the moral politician need not correct these faults immediately. Indeed, he ought not to do so unless or until it is certain that the can actually succeed in correcting them. For instance, a revolution may ultimately be required in order to correct the constitution of a state, but it ought not to be undertaken until the state is prepared for such a correction.

Definitive Articles of a Perpetual Peace

In his three definitive articles of a perpetual peace, Kant lays out the necessary and sufficient conditions for the achievement of perpetual peace. The guiding premise is that “that state of peace must be formally instituted , for a suspension of hostilities is not in itself a guarantee of peace” (98). In this respect, Kant is simply applying Hobbes’s argument to international relations. Unlike Hobbes, Kant thinks that it is necessary and possible formally to institute a state of peace among nations just as it is among men. He affirms that, in a state of nature, that is, in the absence of a common authority, the mere existence of a state permanently threatens every other state such that any of those others may take “hostile action” against it even though that state may not have “actively injured ” them (98). The only way out of this dynamic is the establishment of “some kind of civil constitution,” in the case of international relations, “a constitution based on the international right of states in their relationships with one another ( ius gentium )” (98). The “founding of such a union in the most comprehensive form possible” becomes, in Kant’s theory, “the rightful basis of all political prudence” (129). As we shall see, the character of this union, the extent to which it resembles a state, is not entirely clear. Kant’s concern to establish peace is counterbalanced by his concern to preserve the freedom of states and of their inhabitants.

Perpetual peace depends not only upon establishing an international civil constitution, which Kant takes up in the second definitive article, but also upon establishing republican civil constitutions within each state. This is the subject of the first definitive article, in which Kant articulates what has come to be called “democratic peace theory.” According to Kant “A republican constitution is founded upon three principles: firstly, the principle of freedom for all members of society (as men); secondly, the principle of the dependence of everyone upon a single common legislation (as subjects); and thirdly, the principle of legal equality for everyone (as citizens)” (99). This, in Kant’s view, is the only legitimate constitution. The establishment of such constitutions in the nations of the world also happens to serve the goal of perpetual peace. For, under a republican constitution, popular consent is required for a state to go to war and that consent is unlikely to be forthcoming given the various sacrifices the people would be required to make in waging war. A major cause of war over history, in Kant’s view, is that states’ going to war has generally been determined by princes for whom war does not entail much in the way of sacrifice.

This has been an extremely influential argument. But it almost always travels under the misleading heading “democratic peace theory,” despite the distinction Kant draws between republicanism and democracy. According to Kant, states can be classified in terms of “the different persons who exercise supreme authority”—one (autocracy), several (aristocracy), or all (democracy)—or in terms of “the way in which the nation is governed by its ruler, whoever that may be”—separated legislature and executive (republic), or united legislature and executive (despotism) (100-101). The separation of legislative and executive powers requires a representative form of government, in Kant’s view. And, in democracies, the people are ruled by themselves rather than by representatives. Autocracies and aristocracies, while imperfect, are more likely to partake of “the spirit of a representative system” and have the potential to become republican “by gradual reforms” whereas democracies can only become republican “by means of a violent revolution” (101). Democratic despotism is, in Kant’s eyes, the worst form of government. This is what “the so-called ‘republics’ of antiquity” really were (102). Of course, these so-called republics of antiquity tended toward bellicosity. Their example shows that popular consent alone does not necessarily lessen the likelihood of war and may even augment it. The character of the people and their representatives in republics, perhaps especially modern republics in which private and commercial life is elevated, must be more pacific than that of the ancient assemblies.

Kant envisions republics, impelled by their natural inclination “to seek perpetual peace,” to form a federation of states “securing the freedom of each state in accordance with the idea of international right” (104). Yet states need not passively wait for their neighbors to join such a federation of their own accord. On the contrary, “[e]ach nation, for the sake of its own security, can and ought to demand of the others that they should enter along with it into a constitution, similar to a civil one, within which the rights of each could be secured” (102). This, again, is the logic of Hobbes’s state of nature. The primary obstacle to the establishment of such an international federalism, Kant suggests, is the pride that makes states, or their rulers, cling to their independence. To combat this, Kant, appealing to their pride or shame, compares them to the savages who “cling to their lawless freedom…the freedom of folly to the freedom of reason” (103).

Another obstacle that Kant must overcome is the widespread impression that the prevailing state of affairs among nations is not so dreadful, that it is not entirely bereft of justice but rather ordered according to the traditional ius gentium or right of nations. Kant disparages theorists of the right of nations, singling out Grotius, Pufendorf, and Vattel in particular, as “sorry comforters” whose writings are appealed to whenever they can be used to justify war but never are effective in keeping states from going to war (103). These theorists fail to understand that the establishment of right among nations requires the establishment of some common authority with the capacity to constrain states to conform to right (103). For all his lamenting of the status quo, Kant does see in the appeals to right made by states, however disingenuous, a sign that “man possesses a greater moral capacity, still dormant at present, to overcome eventually the evil principle within him…and to hope that others will do likewise” (103). Here, we see a sign of the progressive hope animating “Perpetual Peace.”

Kant’s extension of Hobbes’s argument to international relations would seem to culminate in the establishment of a sovereign world state and an annihilation of all existing states (or all but one). Yet Kant explicitly distinguishes his call for a federation of states from a call for a sovereign world state. States, insofar as “they already have a lawful internal constitution,” Kant reasons, have a certain dignity that individuals in the state of nature lack. They “have outgrown the coercive right of others to subject them to a wider legal constitution in accordance with their conception of right” (104). Hence it would be unjust to compel states to give up their independent existence. The only just way for states to fulfill the duty to pursue peace is to form a federation aimed, unlike a mere “ peace treaty ,” at ending “ all wars for good” and guaranteeing the freedom of each of its members (104). Yet Kant goes on to suggest that states voluntarily subsuming themselves under one world state is the “only…rational way in which states coexisting with other states can emerge from the lawless condition of pure warfare” (105). But states will not voluntarily do this, perhaps because they are too proud. “[A]n enduring and gradually expanding federation likely to prevent war” is the best available alternative (105). It is suboptimal because it cannot guarantee that “the current of man’s inclination to defy the law and antagonize his fellows” will never burst “forth anew” (105). One can add that there are a host of practical questions about how a federation of states will effectively enforce the law that Kant insists is essential for perpetual peace.

In the final definitive article of a perpetual peace, Kant argues that states must treat foreigners hospitably, that is, not treat them “with hostility, so long as [they behave] in a peaceable manner” (106). This right to hospitality stems, according to Kant, from man’s “right to communal possession of the earth’s surface” (106). By nature, no man has any superior claim to any part of the earth. Over history, of course, the earth has been divided into states. While Kant does not question the legitimacy of national divisions, he does insist that individuals retain the right to travel and establish themselves around the world as long as they do so peacefully. Kant indicates that this article aims to promote the cosmopolitanism needed for perpetual peace. “In this way,” he writes, “continents distant from each other can enter into peaceful mutual relations which may eventually be regulated by public laws, thus bringing the human race nearer and nearer to a cosmopolitan constitution” (106).

In seeking to foster this cosmopolitan spirit, Kant opposes the imperialist policies of eighteenth-century Europe. Claiming territory around the world as though it were uninhabited, Europeans fail to fulfill the duty of peaceful travel that corresponds to the right of hospitality. In identifying commerce as the cause of Europe’s imperial exploits, Kant indicates a limit to Montesquieu’s hopeful predictions of the pacific effects of international trade. Kant sees no good in this imperialism. Not only is it unjust, it is also unprofitable and, given European pretensions to piety, hypocritical (107).

On the Guarantee of a Perpetual Peace

Kant’s progressivism, which distinguishes him from previous theorists of international relations, comes to sight most vividly in the first supplement to “Perpetual Peace,” titled “On the Guarantee of a Perpetual Peace” (108). There he assures us that “Perpetual peace is guaranteed by no less an authority than the great artist Nature herself” (108). (Kant speculates that divine providence may guarantee perpetual peace, but refrains from speaking of it here on the grounds that such speculation is outside the “bounds of possible experience,” i.e., the realm of reason.) It turns out that our natural, amoral or even immoral inclinations lead us toward perpetual peace in spite of ourselves. Nature, Kant explains, has “taken care that human beings are able to live in all the areas where they are settled…driven them in all directions by means of war , so that they inhabit even the most inhospitable regions…[a]nd…compelled them by the same means to enter into more or less legal relationships” (109-10).

Kant argues that human beings have a deeply ingrained natural inclination to bellicosity connected to their love of honor (111-12). While this would seem to undermine any hope of establishing perpetual peace, it actually sets off a dynamic that ends in the realization of precisely this hope. Scattered across the globe, in large part as a result of war, “each people would find itself confronted by another neighbouring people pressing upon it, thus forcing it to form itself internally into a state in order to encounter the other as an armed power ” (112). The formation of a state does not presuppose moral goodness on the part of the citizens; it is sufficient to construct institutions that channel their naturally selfish inclinations in such a way that “compel one another to submit to coercive laws, thereby producing a condition of peace within which the laws can be enforced” (113). Submission by all to law is an essential dimension of republicanism, which, as previously noted, serves the cause of perpetual peace. The establishment of such “a good political constitution” is what makes it possible for the people “to attain a good level of moral culture” (113).

Nature also promotes the realization of international right by maintaining “the separate existence of many independent adjoining states” (113). It does this by means of linguistic and religious differences, which keep the nations from intermingling. Kant acknowledges that these differences can cause war, but he claims that they prevent a greater evil, namely, “an amalgamation of separate nations under a single power which has overruled the rest and created a universal monarchy” (113). Such a world state would necessarily be “a soulless despotism,” which would, in turn, “lapse into anarchy” (113). Here we see Kant’s concern for freedom qualifying his argument for world government. Kant suggests that the enduring division of the world into separate nations is not as inimical to peace as it might seem. He blithely predicts that, “as culture grows and men gradually move towards greater agreement over their principles,” the linguistic and religious difference separating nations “lead to mutual understanding and peace” (114). He also assures us that “peace is created and guaranteed by an equilibrium of forces and a most vigorous rivalry” (114). In other words, a balance of power can serve the cause of peace.

Even as nature separates states in these ways, it unifies them by way of their natural inclination for material gain. “[T]he spirit of commerce ,” Kant claims, “sooner or later takes hold of every people, and it cannot exist side by side with war” (114). Recognizing that commerce and the gain that comes from it depends upon peace, states are driven by non-moral motives to prevent the outbreak of war. Despite his awareness of the dangers of commercial imperialism, Kant here echoes Montesquieu in identifying the pacifying effects of commerce.

Kant’s aim here and throughout the essay is to show that there are grounds for expecting that the goal perpetual peace, the object of our moral duty, will be achieved, that it is “more than an empty chimera” (114). He is concerned to provide encouragement to those who might doubt the practicability of this goal and might, for that reason, be discouraged from fulfilling their duty. Yet the argument that the achievement of perpetual peace is inevitable, even providentially ordained, raises questions about whether it is necessary for moral men to pursue that goal. This, finally, is the paradox of “Perpetual Peace.” This paradox presents in sharp relief the two poles of Kant’s idealism: his subordination of expediency to duty in the conduct of foreign policy and his expectation that right will ultimately prevail among nations.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Recommended Translations of Kant’s Major Political Works:

Kant, Immanuel. Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals . Translated by H. J. Paton. New York: Harper

Perennial Modern Thought, 2009.

———. Political Writings . Translated by H. B. Nisbet. Edited by Hans Reiss. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press, 1991.

Selected Secondary Works on Kant:

Boucher, David. “International and Cosmopolitan Societies: Locke, Vattel, and Kant.” Chap. 11 in Political Theories of International Relations . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Doyle, Michael. “Kant, Liberal Legacies, and Foreign Affairs.” Philosophy and Public Affairs 12 (Part 1, Summer 1983; Part 2, Fall 1983): 205-35, 323-53.

Friedrich, Carl J. Inevitable Peace . Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1948.

Gallie, W. B. “Kant on Perpetual Peace.” Chap. 2 in Philosophers of Peace and War: Kant, Clausewitz, Marx, Engels, and Tolstoy . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979.

Hassner, Pierre. “Les concepts de guerre et de paix chez Kant.” Revue française de science politique 11, no. 3 (September 1961): 642-70.

Hurrell, Andrew. “Kant and the Kantian Paradigm in International Relations.” Review of International Studies 16, no. 3 (1990): 183-204.

Pangle, Thomas L., and Peter J. Ahrensdorf. “Modern Idealism.” Chap. 6 in  Justice among Nations: On the Moral Basis of Power and Peace . Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1999.

Shell, Susan Meld. “Kant on Just War and ‘Unjust Enemies’: Reflections on a ‘Pleonasm’.” Kantian Review 10 (January 2005): 82-111.

Thompson, Janna. “Achieving Perpetual Peace: Kant’s Universal History.” Chap. 2 in Justice and World Order: A Philosophical Inquiry . London: Routledge, 1992.

Tuck, Richard. “Rousseau and Kant.” Chap. 6 in The Rights of War and Peace: Political Thought and the International Order from Grotius to Kant . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Waltz, Kenneth. “Kant, Liberalism, and War.” American Political Science Review 56, no. 2 (June 1962): 331-40.

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Student Essays

Essays-Paragraphs-Speeches

7 Important Essays on World Peace | Is World Peace Possible in 2024

World peace is the only hope of humanity left today. Read an Essay on topic world peace, covering all aspects including; need and importance of world peace, is world peace possible, why world peace, celebration of world peace day etc,

List of Topics

Essay on World Peace | Need & Importance of World Peace today

World peace means cooperation between countries without any violence.The definition of peace is not just related to absence of war, it also means presence of law and justice in a country.

World peace occurs when countries sort our their conflicts without any violence or abuse and work together to improve the lives of the people of their country.

Why World Peace is Important?

All of us have imagined ourselves living in peace and harmony, we all want a world where there is no war, no racism, no terrorism and no violence. Unfortunately, no area of this world is safe from the advanced destructive weapons.

If one bad thing happens in one area of the world then it has its side effects in other parts of the world too. But the thing is that this is not a recent problem, it had been in existence since a long time.

This world has seen so many wars, terrorism and violence till now. It would not be wrong to say that if all the countries do not decide to live in peace and sort out their differences then all the deadly weapons which every country possesses will wipe out this whole civilization.

The destruction caused by previous two wars is so massive that humanity still shivers with the thought of repetition of that trauma.

This planet is facing so many problems right now that it is difficult for one country to solve them. For example, we cannot prevent global warming alone, we cannot prevent wastage of natural resources on this planet alone, we cannot prevent war alone; however, if all the countries cooperate together with peace and unity then we can reverse this destruction of our planet.

When there is world peace, people feel free to visit any country without any fear of terrorism. This promotes tourism and increases economy of any country because people from different countries can easily carry out foreign trades without any fear of violence. People also feel safe to interact with each other and spread the message of peace and love.

How to achieve World Peace?

It is high time that effective measures should be taken before it is too late. United Nations should take serious steps to prevent this destruction and promote world peace. There should be strict ban against the use of force or weapons if there is dispute between countries.

There should be equal distribution of resources and modern equipment between developed and non-developed countries.

There are many countries where education system is very poor. Instead of investing money in weapons, the well-developed countries should focus on ending this misery of those poor countries. This will promote world peace.

The main reason that leads to violence in the world is dictatorship. When people have the freedom to vote and choose right leaders who are also interested in world peace, only then we can achieve world peace.

World peace can also be achieved when globalization is encouraged between countries. When countries will have economic ties between them then they will avoid getting into fights that will affect their economic relationship.

We can also achieve world peace by creating awareness about the benefits of world peace. A country cannot get peace if the people living there do not understand the importance of peace and try to implement it in their daily lives.

We should put all our differences aside and just cooperate without caring whether our neighbor is of different race, caste or religion. We are the future of this country and we should promote the importance of world peace. Only then, this world will become a happy place to live in peacefully.

Short Essay on World Peace:

World peace is a term that encompasses several aspects, including international relations, global cooperation and economic stability. It refers to a state of harmony and non-violence among nations where conflicts are resolved peacefully through diplomacy rather than warfare.

The concept of world peace has been advocated by many individuals and organizations throughout history. The United Nations, founded in 1945 after World War II, has made it one of its main goals to maintain international peace and security. This includes promoting human rights, preventing conflict and providing aid during times of crisis.

Achieving world peace requires the participation and effort of all nations. It involves creating an environment in which different countries can coexist peacefully despite their cultural, political or economic differences. This can be achieved through open communication, mutual understanding and respect for diversity.

One of the major challenges in achieving world peace is resolving conflicts between countries. This can be done through peaceful means such as negotiations, mediation or international courts. It also requires addressing underlying issues such as poverty, inequality and discrimination which often lead to conflict.

In addition to promoting international cooperation, world peace also involves promoting individual actions towards non-violence and tolerance.

This includes respecting human rights, practicing empathy and embracing cultural diversity. Education also plays a crucial role in promoting a culture of peace by teaching values such as respect, equality and cooperation.

While there have been significant efforts towards achieving world peace, it still remains an elusive goal. However, small steps towards peace at the individual level can have a ripple effect on society as a whole. It is important for each individual to take responsibility for promoting peace in their own communities and to advocate for peaceful resolutions on a global scale.

In conclusion, world peace is not just the absence of war but a state of harmony and cooperation among nations. It requires collective effort from all individuals and nations to address underlying issues, promote understanding and respect, and work towards resolving conflicts peacefully.

Only through these actions can we hope to achieve a more peaceful and prosperous world for future generations. Let us all strive towards creating a world where peace prevails over violence and conflict. So let us join hands together in making this possible!

Essay on Terrorism and World Peace:

Terrorism is a global issue that has been present in our society for centuries. It is defined as the use of violence and intimidation in pursuit of political, religious or ideological goals. The effects of terrorism are far-reaching, causing immense suffering and disrupting the peace and stability of nations.

One of the most concerning aspects of terrorism is its impact on world peace. The rise in terrorist activities has led to an increase in fear and insecurity among people around the globe. This, in turn, has created a sense of mistrust between different countries and their citizens.

This lack of trust can often result in strained international relations, which can potentially lead to conflicts and wars.

Moreover, terrorism poses a threat not only to individual countries but also to the entire international community. It knows no borders and can strike at any time, anywhere. The indiscriminate nature of terrorist attacks makes it difficult for governments to protect their citizens, creating a sense of vulnerability and fear among the population.

This fear and uncertainty can also hinder economic growth and development as investors become wary of putting their money in unstable regions.

Another concerning aspect of terrorism is its ability to radicalize individuals and groups. Terrorist organizations often use propaganda and manipulation tactics to recruit vulnerable individuals into their ranks. These radicalized individuals then carry out violent acts in the name of their cause, further perpetuating the cycle of terror.

Effective measures must be taken to combat terrorism and maintain world peace. Governments must work together on an international level to share intelligence, resources, and strategies in order to prevent and respond to terrorist threats. Additionally, efforts must be made to address the root causes of terrorism, such as poverty, inequality, and political grievances.

Furthermore, promoting education and critical thinking can help prevent individuals from falling prey to radicalization. Teaching values of tolerance, understanding and respect for diversity can also promote a more peaceful and inclusive society.

In conclusion, terrorism not only poses a direct threat to the safety of individuals but also has severe consequences on world peace.

It is crucial that the international community comes together to address this issue collectively through effective measures that focus on prevention, intervention and addressing underlying issues.

Essay on Importance of Peace:

Peace is a fundamental aspect of human existence. It is a state of tranquility and harmony that allows individuals to live and interact without fear, violence or conflict. Peace is crucial for the overall well-being of society as it promotes stability, progress, and prosperity.

However, in today’s world, peace remains elusive due to various factors such as political instability, economic inequality, religious differences, and social injustices.

The importance of peace cannot be overstated. Without peace, there can be no development or progress. Conflict and violence hinder growth and disrupt normal functioning within societies. In such situations, basic human needs such as food security, access to education and healthcare are compromised. As a result, individuals become vulnerable to poverty, disease and exploitation.

Furthermore, in times of conflict, people are forced to flee their homes, leading to displacement and refugee crises. This not only affects the individuals directly involved but also has a ripple effect on the surrounding communities and the country as a whole.

Peace is also essential for fostering social cohesion and promoting diversity. In a peaceful society, people from different backgrounds can coexist peacefully, respecting each other’s differences and celebrating their unique cultures.

This creates a sense of unity and belonging among citizens, which strengthens the fabric of society. On the contrary, unrest and conflicts often arise due to a lack of understanding or acceptance of differences between individuals or groups. This further deepens divides within societies and hinders progress towards peace.

Moreover, peace is crucial for maintaining international relations and promoting global cooperation. In today’s interconnected world, peace is essential for conducting trade, addressing environmental issues and tackling global challenges such as pandemics and climate change.

Conflicts between nations not only disrupt trade and economic growth but also have severe consequences on the well-being of people worldwide.

In addition to its societal benefits, peace is also vital for individual well-being. Living in a peaceful society allows individuals to lead fulfilling lives where they can pursue their dreams and aspirations without fear or hindrance. Peaceful environments foster creativity, innovation and personal development, which are essential for human progress.

In conclusion, the importance of peace cannot be emphasized enough. It underpins all aspects of human life, from personal to societal well-being.

Therefore, it is crucial for individuals, communities, and nations to work towards promoting peace and resolving conflicts through dialogue, understanding, and cooperation. Only then can we create a world where everyone can live in harmony and reach their full potential.

Essay on World Peace Day:

World Peace Day, also known as International Day of Peace, is observed every year on September 21st to promote peace and non-violence among nations and people. This day was first established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981 and its purpose has only become more relevant with time.

The Importance of World Peace

Peace can be defined as a state of harmony where there is an absence of conflict or hostility. It is not just the absence of war, but also encompasses social justice, equality, human rights, and sustainable development. Unfortunately, our world today is riddled with conflicts, both big and small. From wars between countries to domestic violence within households, peace seems to be constantly under threat.

World Peace Day serves as a reminder that peace is not just the responsibility of governments and world leaders, but it is something that everyone should strive for. It highlights the importance of tolerance, understanding, and respect towards one another regardless of race, religion, or nationality.

The Role of Education

Education plays a crucial role in promoting peace and preventing conflicts. By educating individuals about diversity, acceptance, and conflict resolution, we can create a more peaceful society. Education also helps to break down stereotypes and prejudices that often lead to discrimination and violence.

On World Peace Day, many schools around the world organize activities such as discussions, debates, and workshops focused on promoting peace education. This helps students to understand the importance of peace and encourages them to become active agents in promoting peace in their communities and beyond.

The Power of Unity

One of the main messages of World Peace Day is that peace can only be achieved through unity. We are all part of one global community, and it is our collective responsibility to work towards a peaceful world. This day encourages people to set aside their differences and come together to promote peace and non-violence.

Furthermore, when individuals unite for a common cause, they have the power to bring about positive change. From grassroots movements to international organizations, many initiatives have been successful in promoting peace and making a difference in the world.

Taking Action

World Peace Day not only raises awareness about the importance of peace but also inspires people to take action. It calls on individuals, organizations, and governments to do their part in promoting peace and resolving conflicts. This can be done through various means, such as promoting diplomacy, addressing human rights violations, and supporting sustainable development.

Moreover, World Peace Day is also a time for people to reflect on their own actions and how they contribute to the promotion of peace. It encourages individuals to take a stand against violence and discrimination in their daily lives and work towards creating a more peaceful society.

In conclusion, World Peace Day serves as a reminder that peace is not just an ideal but something that we must actively work towards. Through education, unity, and taking action, we can create a better world for ourselves and future generations

Is World Peace Possible Essay:

Peace is a concept that has been longed for by generations of people around the world. It is often associated with harmony, tranquility, and the absence of violence. However, in reality, peace seems to be an elusive goal as conflicts and wars continuously plague our society.

History has shown us that achieving world peace is easier said than done. The complexity of human relationships, differing ideologies, and the pursuit of power have resulted in numerous wars throughout time. Despite efforts from international organizations like the United Nations to promote peaceful resolutions, conflicts are still prevalent in many regions.

But does this mean that world peace is impossible? While it may seem like an insurmountable task, there are still reasons to believe that it can be achieved.

Firstly, the concept of world peace does not necessarily mean the absence of all conflicts. It is nearly impossible for everyone in the world to agree on everything and live in perfect harmony. However, it can be achieved through effective conflict resolution and management. By addressing underlying issues and finding diplomatic solutions, conflicts can be minimized and ultimately lead to a more peaceful global community.

Secondly, education plays a crucial role in promoting peace. Ignorance and lack of understanding often fuel conflicts between different groups of people. By educating individuals about cultural diversity, empathy, and acceptance, we can create a world where differences are celebrated rather than cause for conflict.

Moreover, advancements in technology have made communication and cooperation easier between nations. With improved communication channels, misunderstandings can be avoided and trust can be built. This allows for better collaboration in solving global issues such as poverty, climate change, and human rights violations.

Lastly, personal responsibility also plays a significant role in achieving world peace. Each individual has the power to promote peace through their actions and relationships with others. By practicing kindness, empathy, and fostering positive relationships in our daily lives, we can contribute to a more peaceful society.

In conclusion, while world peace may seem like an unattainable dream, it is not impossible. Through effective conflict resolution, education, technological advancements, and personal responsibility, we can work towards a more peaceful world. It is up to each and every one of us to play our part in building a better future for generations to come.

Love and Peace Essay:

Love and peace are two fundamental concepts that have been explored, discussed, and celebrated throughout human history. Both love and peace have been the subject of many religious, philosophical, and artistic works, with countless interpretations and meanings attached to them.

At its core, love is a deep emotional connection between individuals. It encompasses feelings of affection, care, compassion, and understanding. The concept of love has been romanticized in popular culture as an all-encompassing force that can conquer all obstacles.

On the other hand, peace is often described as a state of tranquility and harmony. It is usually associated with the absence of conflict or violence. However, peace goes beyond just the absence of war; it also includes inner peace – a sense of calm and contentment within oneself.

Throughout history, the pursuit of love and peace has been a central theme in various cultures. Many religions promote the idea of love for others as a way to achieve inner peace and harmony with the world. Philosophers have also explored the concept of love, with some viewing it as an essential aspect of human existence.

In recent times, global events such as wars, political conflicts, and social injustices have brought attention to the need for greater efforts towards achieving both love and peace. Movements advocating for equality, human rights, and environmental sustainability often use the principles of love and peace as their guiding values.

Love and peace are also closely intertwined – one cannot exist without the other. Love can create a sense of harmony within oneself and with others, ultimately leading to a more peaceful world. Similarly, peace can foster an environment of love and understanding among individuals.

In conclusion, love and peace are powerful concepts that have the potential to bring about positive change in the world. They are not just abstract ideas but rather essential values that should be actively cultivated and promoted by individuals, communities, and societies as a whole.

As the famous saying goes, “Where there is love there is life.” So let us spread love and strive for peace continually – both within ourselves and in our interactions with others. Ultimately, it is through these efforts that we can create a better world for ourselves and future generations.

World Peace is Impossible Essay:

World peace has been a topic of discussion and debate for centuries. Many great leaders, philosophers, and activists have dedicated their lives to achieving world peace, but it still remains an elusive goal. Despite various efforts made towards promoting peace, conflicts continue to arise all around the world.

One of the major reasons why achieving world peace seems impossible is the inherent nature of human beings. We are territorial creatures who often prioritize our own interests over others’. This leads to competition, power struggles, and ultimately conflict. As long as this innate trait exists within us, true lasting peace will be difficult to achieve.

Moreover, there are also external factors that contribute to ongoing conflicts across the globe. Economic disparities, political ideologies, religious differences, and access to resources are just some of the reasons that fuel tensions and wars between nations. In a world where power and wealth are unevenly distributed, achieving harmony and cooperation between countries becomes a formidable challenge.

Additionally, we live in an era where technology has advanced exponentially, making it easier for weapons to be created and used. This not only increases the likelihood of conflicts escalating into full-scale wars but also makes it harder to achieve disarmament and de-nuclearization.

The fear of annihilation and the desire for dominance drive nations to constantly enhance their military capabilities, further hindering efforts towards global peace. Despite these challenges, it is important not to lose hope in the pursuit of world peace. History has shown us that peaceful resolutions are possible even in the midst of intense conflicts.

The United Nations, for example, has successfully mediated and resolved numerous disputes between nations. Interfaith organizations have also played a crucial role in promoting dialogue and understanding among different religions.

Moreover, it is essential to recognize the power of individuals in promoting peace at a grassroots level. Small acts of kindness, compassion, and empathy can create ripples that lead to positive changes in communities and ultimately, the world. By actively practicing love and nonviolence in our daily lives, we contribute towards building a culture of peace.

Related Post: Essay on Need & Importance of Moral Values in Life

Conclusion:

While achieving world peace may seem like an insurmountable task, it is important to continue striving towards this goal. The human race has made tremendous progress over the years and through collective effort and perseverance, we can overcome the obstacles that stand in the way of achieving a peaceful world for future generations.

We must never give up on the possibility of a better, more harmonious world and work towards it with unwavering determination

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Commaful Storytelling Blog

1001 Writing Prompts About Peace

March 16, 2021

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Whether you are a novelist, short story author, or poet, there are certain things you are expected to do as a writer. Some of these things would make you better at your craft, while the others would make your readers better people. One of the things you could do for your readers is write stories that would spread awareness about important matters, such as peace.

In this day and age, it is important to promote peace to people of all ages to prevent the increase of arguments, misunderstandings, conflicts, and even wars.

Below are writing prompts. Used to compose poems, short stories, personal essays, or novels that would promote peace. 

  • A Princess seeks a remunerative job to pay off her expenses, because her peaceful home is where her heart truly lies.
  • In the future, violence is no longer used to settle differences. It is up to you to figure out a way to keep the peace without using violence.
  • You are given the rights to choose the laws of the world. Create a law that you believe will promote peace.
  • In a world with increased violence, how would people find a peaceful solution?
  • Describe your efforts to calm down a friend who is deeply upset. What are they, and are they successful?
  • Someone once told me that maintaining peace is a lost cause because people just aren’t peaceful anymore, what do you do to combat that?
  • A peace treaty has been signed. Write a paragraph about what your country is like now that peace has been achieved.
  • Write a humorous post about how to avoid fighting.
  • A noble strives to establish peace in his or her nation.
  • An unexpected tragedy takes place and many wonder what could have been done to prevent it.
  • As humanity evolves, we move closer and closer to peace among all people.
  • Write a scene that makes peace an idea that is worth living for.
  • In an effort to put out a crisis, one nation starts a war.
  • Write about a time in history where war was about to start but didn’t.
  • The king/queen’s subjects are constantly engaged in war. It is up to the king/queen to establish peace for the kingdom.
  • What would it take for the human race to not fight with themselves, put down their weapons and form a world full of love?
  • What were your ideas like? Let us know in the comments!
  • The United Nations summons all of the world’s leaders to end the cycle of violence and promote peace. Each leader approaches this challenge in an entirely different way.
  • Write about everlasting peace in the world.
  • What, in your opinion, breeds war?
  • Your character is from a planet that does not have peace. When a mysterious box shows up and promises instant peace, your character is naturally skeptical.
  • Write about people going to extremes to promote peace in their communities.
  • Write about jealousy or the feeling of being left out and why peace in the present circumstances is important.
  • Write about a battle that has the protagonists and antagonists reaching a peaceful conclusion.
  • In a galaxy far, far away, the dark side gains control and it’s up to brave souls to bring peace back to the galaxy.
  • Write about a war-torn home.
  • This is a popular writing prompt. It lends itself to many possible essay topics concerning the meaning of peace.
  • After many wars, your dream is realized. The Great Council meets to make peace and build a future.
  • Write about the concept of peace in non-Christian terms.
  • A celebration broke out, replete with wild dancing and merriment as a treaty was signed
  • A terrorist group has taken people hostage. It’s up to you to promote the arts in the hopes of saving their lives.
  • Write about a character who is very empathetic to others, despite the conflicts around them.
  • People from all over the world come together to discuss peace. Each person has a differing perception of it. What does this say about human nature?
  • Write about the times you tried to promote peace.
  • Have you come across someone who is addicted to conflict/warfare in your life?
  • Looking for something here at the Writer’s Rules that is not listed in this post? Why not let us know…
  • In a world filled with ever-escalating violence, what can one person do to end it?
  • What steps can we take to achieve peace? The story will take place in a fantasy realm.
  • Write about what war means to you.
  • What is a peace ritual that you believe is a good representation of peace?
  • Can peace ever be attained?
  • Write about a friend of yours and a time they were the cause of peace or the peacekeeper in your life.
  • Sketch something that depicts or inspires peace.
  • Write a poem or story about a lasting peace.
  • A peace treaty is signed. But peace is thrown into jeopardy by a specific person. How do you rectify the evil actions of this person?
  • Write about circumstances that are causing your character to feel discouraged and negative.
  • Write about a time when people across the world had peace for a day. What did they do, and what did you do?
  • This is the personal touch section. It is similar to a human interest story, and should emphasize feelings—especially in your own life.
  • Write about how you would maintain peace between two nations.
  • Make a list of ten ways to get along better with someone.
  • Write the story of a peace-keeping agent.
  • Imagine that you are racing against time to create a perpetual peace in the world.
  • Out of devotion to peace, someone goes to see a fight and steps in when there’s about to be bloodshed.
  • Write about being at peace with oneself.
  • Write about a war and what steps need to occur to prevent another.
  • Describe hardship and strife at home based on the events in your life.
  • You’re on a train. In front of you, everyone is fighting, but you try to be the one person who stands for peace.
  • Write about a time that you did something to ease pain and suffering.
  • Write about a revolution with a cause worth fighting for.
  • A peaceful demonstration turned confrontational in front of your eyes.
  • Jersey Shore, Muhammad Ali, and Ed Koch are all in an argument about peace and hatred. Who is wrong and why?
  • Write a rhyming poem about peace
  • It is your birthday. You are surrounded by loved ones, enjoying each other’s company.
  • A shooting occurs outside of a courthouse. The families of the victims want to send the shooter to death row. However, your job is to promote peace among these warring parties. How do you do it?
  • A person surprised another person with a new pen at an art show. That caused peace to erupt.
  • Write about one peace that has been lost.
  • Write about a peace of mind you’ve never had.
  • War is just a simple misunderstanding.
  • Now that you are a grown-up, you must remind people about peace.
  • An invasion is taking place. Write the views of the people who see this as an opportunity to create peace by uniting under one ruler while those who are deeply concerned about freedom and peace in the invaded country fight to maintain a free and peaceful life.
  • Write about a time of peace in history.
  • The world is in turmoil. As chaos spreads, a hero appears to keep the peace.
  • Imagine a world where peace-making is a lost art.
  • Your neighbor seems to be preparing for a war. You must convince her peace is the correct path.
  • You are in a foreign place and feeling the need for peace. What do you do?
  • What actions or activities promote peace?
  • How would you swap places with an animal in a zoo that lived in peace?
  • Write a short story in the world you’ve created to explain how the world stays at peace.
  • Write about a time when you made someone feel better in the wake of a disaster or tragedy.
  • You must create a sign that will, in a single glance, inspire the people to live in harmony.
  • Imagine a world where everyone was peaceful. Write about this world using your own unique words. Make it simple. Make it complex. The choice is yours!
  • Why is peace so important?
  • What would happen if no one would fight for peace? Write about how peace would be restored.
  • Write about a time when you lost/found peace of mind.
  • The world seems peaceful, but not for long.
  • After years of fighting over what is right and what is wrong, two sides make peace. How will they celebrate and what will they do?
  • What is peace to you?
  • How would you feel about war if you lived in a peaceful village or town that is attacked by a vicious enemy?
  • What happened to make you stop fighting others and instead find ways to work toward peace?
  • What happened to cause peace to end?
  • Write a story about or against peace.
  • On the same day, two friends fight. One causes a fight with a group of people while the other one plans to bring peace. How does each student change the world?
  • Find an incident where peace was almost lost, or was lost, but was miraculously brought back. What do you think would have happened if peace hadn’t been restored?
  • People are always looking for war, always trying to prove themselves, always trying to prove something. It’s time for a quiet revolution. Use a fictional character and have them bring peace to the world.
  • Explain the benefits of peace in your life.
  • Write about a time when you lost your patience but decided peace was more important.
  • When peace breaks out, how do you celebrate?
  • You’ve been walking for months. Weary and hungry, you find an uninhabited island. A booming voice tells you that you have been thoughtless in your life and has given you a chance to gain peace of mind by living like one of the animals. What do you choose or is it made for you?
  • Now that war has ended, what will you do with your life?
  • Write a story about world peace.
  • Write about a peaceful protest you have read or participated in.
  • Write about a peaceful protest.
  • Write about the strange creatures that live in an alternate dimension, and what peace means for them.
  • A holocaust survivor attempts to promote peace in her nation.
  • Her father was once a warrior, but he no longer believes in war. It’s up to his daughter to begin the war for their family’s glory.
  • It’s possible to keep the peace by working together as a group. What causes individuals to focus on fighting instead of solving disagreements?
  • Write about how you would bring a peaceful end to a violent conflict.
  • Write about a young person, with or without special abilities, who is able to keep the peace.
  • There is violence in the streets. A new leader has risen up and with that he brings turmoil. It’s up to you to restore peace to the people.
  • World peace means different things to different people. What does world peace mean to you?
  • Imagine an all out war with modern weaponry. Would peace still be attainable?
  • How would peace be achieved in your family, workplace, neighborhood, community, and so on?
  • Make a list of ways in which you encourage peace.
  • Migration in the modern era is fraught with contention. This is a place to examine what is most likely to cause conflict regarding this issue.
  • There’s a peace treaty with the insect kingdom and it’s up to you to protect it.
  • What is peace? Why is it important?
  • Write about how you can be a better peacemaker.
  • A character must travel to the edge of the earth to accomplish peace.
  • Write from the perspective of a person who is trying to promote peace. Use as many specific details as you can.
  • If there was one thing that you could do that would bring peace to the world, what would it be?
  • What idea have you heard from that you thought was a very good idea? This acts as a metaphor for peace. How did using this metaphor affect this idea you heard?
  • Your government has failed to protect you and brought about nothing but conflict. Now it is up to you to reclaim the peace and bring justice to the land.
  • What are the three most vital components for all human interactions and interactions among humankind as a whole?
  • Alien race X is invading the Earth and spreading war. The leader decrees that peace is the answer, and he will use peace to unify his people.
  • Write about what your life would be like without peace.
  • Imagine a country in which peace will be declared in five years. What must become of that country during the coming five years?
  • Write a letter to someone who would like to make peace in the world.
  • You’re shrouded in a conflict between two groups of people. Write about what is happening and how you intend to solve the conflict.
  • Write a scene detailing your desire to live in world peace.
  • How can film promote peace in the human condition? Write about it.
  • What is a metaphor that peace and war could be compared to?
  • Write about why love is stronger than hate.
  • Stories and tales of war fascinate readers and inspire new ideas. Take up the challenge and create a collection of stories unique to the world of peace.
  • If peace could exist in an aspect of life in your story — even if there is war everywhere else — what would be the point of conflict?
  • Write about your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to establishing world peace.
  • People in an orphanage must put aside their differences.
  • Write about a lifelong friendship between friends from completely different walks of life.
  • Write about a war that was justified.
  • In times of conflict, other countries must refrain from taking sides.
  • What can people do to help promote peace?
  • It’s Christmas Eve. Which famous scene from a Christmas movie would you write about if you had to do a re-imagining of it?
  • Write about a world war erupting and a rise of new leaders to bring about peace.
  • The power of prayer brings forth three miracles.
  • A peaceful protest is taking place. It leads to the leader of a country actually listening to the people who are being oppressed.
  • How can citizens of the world help their leaders promote peace?
  • Write about a character who decides to leave her home to establish peace elsewhere.
  • All of your wishes come true. Peace around the world is achieved. You can now make peace golden.
  • In a desperate situation, it’s your job to keep the peace.
  • Write about which relationships need some peaceful influence.
  • In a world where tensions between superpowers is at an all time high, establish peace through communication and hear what both sides of an argument have to say.
  • Write a letter to your family telling them all about your experience that day at peace camp.
  • Think about the cause for fighting related to peace. Write about war as it relates to peace.
  • Write about how you keep peace at home in your family.
  • Make a poem or song about peace for the world to enjoy.
  • Write a point-of-view piece about how one person might turn the other cheek while someone is violently attacking him or her.
  • Write about someone who’s making the world a more peaceful place.
  • Write about an institution such as school or work. What do the people inside this institution know about peace?
  • A war is about to begin. An armed nuclear strike is about to drop on its capital. Many people are preparing for war. Peaceful negotiations have failed. The clock is ticking on a nuclear strike. Peaceful fighters must outlast the war machines to win.
  • What would it take for you to become a violent individual?
  • In relation to peace, write about anything that pertains to the topic.
  • A white dove spreads her wings after a violent storm. The world seems to be in harmony once more.
  • What do you do when arguments turn into fights? Do you become a peacemaker or a peacemaker’s tool?
  • Write about how you’ve used violence to fight for peace in your life.
  • How can we promote world peace?
  • Whether or not you’re involved in it, write about a time when you witnessed or heard about a riot.
  • Imagine a future where peace is the only thing on the minds of every single individual. How is everything different? What would you do for peace?
  • Write about one argument you had.
  • Explain what it would take for every man, woman, and child on earth to again see peace outright.
  • Write about why peace must exist in a polluted world.
  • Write a story about how a group of people used violence to address a problem and how peace was ultimately achieved.  Write a response from another character who prefers peace and tried to stop these people from exacting violence.
  • Write about the beginnings of a truce between warring nations.
  • Write a personal reflection on your experiences in peace.
  • How would you use your talents to be an agent of peace?
  • Write about a time when you made an impact on somebody’s life.
  • Describe a place where peace remains evident and things are quiet.
  • What words would you use to represent peace in your life?
  • Positive war fiction is all about peace. Someone is fighting for peace. A war has begun to bring peace.
  • Your character finds an old letter. What does it say?
  • Is there conflict between you and someone else? How do you keep the peace?
  • Write about how you would create a world where no one had hard feelings toward others for any reason.
  • In a land torn apart by war, everyone is safe, until one day a conflict arises. Read more writing prompts …
  • Future technology has changed everyone’s way of life. Someone has discovered that the new developments hold a secret that will allow him to conquer the world. It’s up to you to find a way to keep the peace in the world so that time will never be turned back.
  • A specific type of peace, perhaps an inner sense of peace with one’s self, maybe peace with nature, is needed in order to overcome a unique problem in a story.
  • What is peace for you?
  • Write about a time a conflict was handled peacefully.
  • The world is a violent mess. What steps would you take to bring peace into this chaos?
  • Several friends disagree about the world in a heated conflict. Since one of the friends is stressed about a question on their future, it’s up to you to do some research and present a viable solution.
  • Write a peace story that portrays conflicts and how hate destroys.
  • If you or a loved one were dying, what would you know or wish for peace-wise?
  • Write a story about eliminating conflict and fighting in the world.
  • “Peace can mean different things to different people. Write about what peace means to you.”
  • There are those people in your life seeking to disrupt peace.
  • It’s time for world peace. Write about how it is achieved.
  • Write about a time when physical violence ended peace.
  • What peace does to a person.
  • A young girl refuses to be part of her culture’s tradition because it sunders peacefulness in the land.
  • A young boy and his mother are talking about the world. She tries to explain how peace is difficult to obtain.
  • Write about the value of life. You don’t need to write about the value of all life or the beauty of life. Focus on one value or on one type of life. For example, you could write about an insect or plant or nurture life or innocent life.
  • The sole cause of all war lies within a people’s lack of knowledge. Write about how you can positively affect this in your community.
  • A girl is always caught in the middle of a fight between her friends. She is worried that chaos may break out if she stays put.
  • Write about the most peaceful moment of your life. Write about the time when you felt the most love.
  • The book is open if you want peace, or you can turn the page to start a war.
  • Her family has prevented war many times…but can she do it one more time?
  • A group of people need to make peace in order to survive. The conflict might be internal or external.
  • When a family member, friend, or acquaintance violates one of the Ten Commandments or ‘dis’ one’s God, how do you feel and what do you do?
  • Write about an incident that occurred in your childhood related to war, violence, or some other form of inner conflict.
  • Write about a time when conflict broke out, but then someone provided a solution.
  • Make a list of ways you could live peacefully under any set of circumstances.
  • A lover’s tension is mounting. A fight is about to break out. Can your character maintain peace in the midst of conflict?
  • A young man who feels as though he’s lost everything searches for peace.
  • The kindling for war needs to be put out. Write about how you’d do it.
  • Your romantic partner fights with you over everything. How do you keep world peace in your love life?
  • A young man is tasked with winning a fight.
  • Show man’s need to create peaceful habitats, despite his predisposition toward conflict.
  • As the days of humanity dwindle, a new peaceful planet rises to power and peace reigns worldwide.
  • Write about a time you witnessed peace.
  • Negotiating the surrender of the German troops was a method of bringing about peace.
  • Write about your feelings on uprooting conflict and developing world peace.
  • Write about a conflict in your life that needs to be resolved.
  • Write about a character who always wants everyone to be happy.
  • Write a letter about peace.
  • What would you consider to be humanity’s civil war?
  • With regard to the relationship between a man and a woman, what steps could be taken to lessen the potential for conflict?
  • Write a letter to God about peace.
  • The peace that exists between two people will be examined.
  • Is world peace really possible? Why or why not?
  • Write about why it is better to avoid war.
  • Write about someone who refused to accept peace or promoted war.
  • A group of people devote their lives to perfecting physical and mental conflict. What is difficult about being in a place like this?
  • Peace is one of the themes of the book “Salt to the Sea”. Your writing can be inspired by that book!
  • Yes, it’s that simple. All you have to do is write about peace and then learn how to spell it correctly. Get started right now!
  • A lot of people have given up on peace. Why is that?
  • You have been tasked with being a mediator during a dispute between two countries.
  • A character experiences peace, then chaos.
  • Write about how you would restore peace between two people or groups.
  • Write about what you think peace means.
  • You have graduated from different peace schools. Show off your tools.
  • Write about a time that was hard, but you managed to work through it peacefully.
  • A protester writes a compelling sign about the war he/she opposes.
  • There’s a lull in the fighting in a world ravaged by war. One man was able to keep the fighting from flaring up again. Write about how he achieved peace.
  • A group of adventurers are friends but do not necessarily get along in the beginning. What can be done to help the group get along better?
  • Show the world the positives that follow a lasting peace treaty.
  • The community and local government has very poor relations. This poses a significant threat of violence. You’re in the position to help restore the peace.
  • When a person is famous, they are often followed constantly.How are they able to create peace in their relationships?
  • In this dystopian or post-apocalyptic world, peace exists through the following entity.
  • There’s fighting and turmoil happening all over the world. It’s up to the writer to make everyone see the beauty of peace.
  • Two cultures meet for the first time. Write about how peace comes to these people.
  • In a dystopian world where people fight over scarce resources, what role do you play in preserving peace?
  • All honor to those who seek peace and promote it.
  • Your team is ready for battle. You are the only one who can stand in the way of the inevitable destruction.
  • What pushes peace aside in favor of hate and malice? What steps can you take to ensure peace?
  • One person does not want peace in the world. Who is this character, and how do they bring the world to the brink of war?
  • Two sisters work to stay out of trouble in a harsh environment in the big city. How do they do it?
  • Write a piece explaining how the fight for peace applies to you.
  • Write about a moment in which you contributed towards peace.
  • An agreement has been signed. A new age of peace has come to the island. Celebrate the new world freely.
  • Write about an unlikely peace agreement that needs to be made.
  • Describe the last time that you were at peace.
  • Write a love scene between a warrior of war and an angel of peace.
  • You find yourself in a world where violence is the norm. How do you remain peaceful under these conditions?
  • Describe a time when you displayed peace.
  • A young person is bullied in school. Write about how he/she is able to keep a peaceful response.
  • You have a friend who lacks peace of mind. What would you do to help them?
  • Mamoko, a kindly yet steadfast peacekeeper, is always involved in conflict and mediates between groups. She is discovering how great of a burden roles like these may become.
  • An important international summit on peace is about to take place. However, many foreign leaders are afraid of a terrorist attack.
  • Humanity is getting further away from peace. What can change that?
  • Write about justifying the invasion of a place that is promoting peace.
  • The characters in your story live in a peaceful world for which they are thankful. Think of all of the constructive things they could do to keep their world in a peaceful state.
  • Write about an exciting moment in your life, using peaceful terms.
  • Escape from an unusual location.
  • Peace can be torn apart, destroyed or murdered by hate. But peace can never truly die. Write a story about resiliency or peace.
  • Write about the difficulties of other religions trying to peacefully coexist with each other.
  • Write about a man who is always trying to find peace within him.
  • Just the act of writing and reflecting can help you find inner peace. Therefore, write a few sentences about how writing itself helps you find inner peace.
  • Would you like to provide writing prompts or a topic for this column?
  • Write about what you might have done differently during a period of war.
  • Find peace in a chaotic environment
  • Peace is the most important commodity we crave. We’ll do almost anything for it. In this tale of suspense, you must strive to keep the peace even at your own peril.
  • Someone you know breaks the peace, but you forgive them.
  • While preparing for peace, leaders must make tough decisions that make them unpopular. Are the decisions worth the peace? Would you make the same choice if you were a leader?
  • Write a scene about a person having a positive influence by spreading peace.
  • Write about something sexy.
  • Staying calm is the best way to keep the peace.
  • Rioting is going on all around you and you have to stop the fighting.
  • Will war ever actually result in peace?
  • Write about a peaceful time in your life.
  • After you die, you have a vision of a world at war. You must send a sign that it’s still possible to keep the peace, but it must be cryptic.
  • Begin with “We must achieve world peace.”
  • Write a story about a peace-maker.
  • The best way to guarantee peace is to be prepared for the worst.
  • Even though there are still threats, the number of violent acts in the world is decreasing. The slums, however, are still pretty bleak. How about you write about a creative slum dweller with great ideas?
  • You do whatever is in your power to promote peace and quiet in your home.
  • You’ve made up your mind and decide today is the day you will become a pacifist. Write about your decision and all the things that influence it.
  • Someone has been making a big deal out of a non-event. In your view, what needs to happen in order for the deceased person’s legacy to be preserved instead of purposely crashed by the focus person?
  • You are put in charge of keeping peace among several different kinds of creatures in the world who usually never come into contact with each other.
  • Imagine that love can bring peace to a fighting family.
  • The spirits negotiate for peace.
  • How can peace be established between a Mother Earth and Mankind?
  • Write about a time when you tried to keep the peace.
  • Three people. Six emotions. Can they learn to give peace a chance?
  • Write a dialogue between two characters with opposing views on peace.
  • A devastated nation falls into anarchy. You need to bring peace. What is the first step?
  • Write about what conditions must be present in order to have a war.
  • A character is living in a time of peace, but they still feel restless and dissatisfied.
  • The characters that you have created for your stories are embroiled in a long battle. How do they compromise in order to maintain peace?
  • Describe two different scenarios that would cause you to lose sleep.
  • Charles is a wealthy man with a large estate. One of his workers steals from him. He is afraid that the townspeople will disrespect him and thus attack his estate. He decides that the simplest solution is to murder the worker. Write a diary entry from Charles’s perspective explaining why he killed the worker, as well as a diary entry from the worker explaining how he was wronged by Charles.
  • Write about your experience learning about war and peace.
  • Write about peace in your personal life.
  • If you were on a team of superheroes, what would be the name of your group and what powers would you want?
  • A tale of two lovers, one of which wants nothing but eternal peace.
  • Children in a country are slowly being taken away from their parents and indoctrinated into a certain belief group. This country is terrorizing surrounding countries in an effort to divert attention away from themselves. Write about the child in this story working to bridge the gap between these two opposing groups of people and succeed. How so?
  • In what ways can you make the world and the people around you safer, more peaceful, and happier?
  • One person will be asked to represent war and another is asked to be for peace. Both need to lay out how they’re so certain about their point of view?
  • Write about the mental state of a soldier who is in the process of war.
  • What does peace mean to you? How do you show your support for peace?
  • Write about how you would solve your country’s problem with poverty.
  • Use as many details, descriptions and sensory details.
  • How can we spread ideas of peace?
  • Write about a man who refuses to participate in any form of violence.
  • Write about a peaceful protest that you would like to have happen.
  • A child is crying. People are screaming. Oddly, it does not seem to have a cause. Who or what is the girl crying for?
  • Write a letter to freedom fighters, the patriots, and parents from a completely different perspective. Tell them the things that need to change to create peace.
  • Write about how you would foster peace in your family.
  • Most people act peaceful. A few, however, aren’t. In this short story, you are the only person who’s not being peaceful.
  • Write about a plan that refuses to promote peace in the world.
  • Write about a time when you kept the peace.
  • Score 0-100 – Is violence justified in some situations?
  • Describe the day a resolution toward world peace will be signed.
  • A nuclear missile is heading toward one of your loved ones. Write about how you would help to avoid this crisis.
  • Write about an individual who can’t achieve the kind of peace that they want
  • A selfish prince is transformed into a fat and lazy fairy when he doesn’t share his peace.
  • Without conflict, many stories and books would be vastly different. Discuss ways to create conflict in a story.
  • The constitution of the United States starts out with a Preamble. What would be an ideal peace preamble?
  • This time of year is filled with goodwill and family love. Write about the moments that make you thankful to live in peace with your loved ones.
  • Write about a pacifist. Give some examples why pacifism is good and others why it is bad.
  • A religion based on peace is being threatened by another religion. Write about how they resolve the threat and promote peace in the world.
  • Do you know someone who is an excellent peacekeeper? Write about them.
  • You must take what you know about the Civil Rights movement and apply it to the present day.
  • Write about an instance where you saw peace.
  • You’re on death row. The day of your final meal has come. It’s time to make your final wish. What is it?
  • A man reminisces on the time when peace was still there.
  • Write about the peace you wake up to every morning.
  • Write about the most peaceful night of your life.
  • Transition Words That Show Movement
  • School playground on the first day of the year.
  • Imagine a world where peace means unconditional love. Then write a piece inspired by what you’ve imagined.
  • describe one way to establish peace in about all the country/ world.
  • Feels the weight of their age responsibility of keeping the peace.
  • A child is abandoned. Do you think the baby’s caretaker had a selfish reason? Write about what you think happened.
  • Write about a way you saw the power of peace.
  • Today’s Modern Issues writers have decided to take part in a writing contest related to peace. They write about how they believe peace needs to be maintained. Other participants are free to vote for their favorite entry.
  • Is world peace possible? Write from a futuristic point of view.
  • Two people are facing off. A misunderstanding has led one to believe things about the other. Write about how they resolve this misunderstanding and keep peace between them.
  • Make a list of commonly held beliefs, and then write about why some people are against living in peace with one another.
  • Write about a character whom you consider peaceful and why. Create an outline for their journey from a place of anger to a place of peace.
  • A child is on a video call. Her dad is in the military. Write about how her parents maintain peace back home.
  • You could be the person promoting world peace, or a nobody who has a part in this process.
  • A man gets called to testify in a treaty conference. He goes, but also goes about his business, just keeping the peace.
  • Imagine that a war just ended. How do you think the warriors would feel if they were to see how the world now lives in peace?
  • You have the power to advise the young ruler of a major warring nation. What do you tell the young ruler to improve relations with their neighbors?
  • Help your young hero win the fight and restore peace to his land.
  • The concept of peace offers a large number of categories for authors to deal with. Literature is the perfect medium to portray all kinds of conflicts and peace in global settings, as well as interpersonal ones. A writer can deal with different worldviews, cultures, and personalities, writing his way to peace or guessing at that solution.
  • How can we foster world peace tomorrow?
  • Revenge feels good. What are some reasons to forgo revenge?
  • What could cause or trigger a world conflict?
  • Write a one-paragraph letter to a soldier, thanking him or her for their service, and encouraging them to keep fighting for world peace.
  • You dedicated your life to peace, but conflict handled you.
  • Write about the moment when you finally understood why violence won’t solve any problems.
  • Someone is planning an attack against the country, but you have mechanisms to stop them.
  • Write a solemn chapter about peace in a novel. Imagine this peaceful event happening in the story, and then write about it accordingly.
  • If you had the power to define peace, what would you say it is?
  • Reoccuring Dreams is an original title by Mathew Cocozello.
  • A soldier returns from war. He has trouble finding peace.
  • What is the best way to promote peace in your life?
  • Write a scene in which you work to keep everyone safe more effectively than anyone else.
  • Imagine yourself helping a specific child who has experienced war.
  • Now write about how you wouldn’t promote peace in the world.
  • A story about how a teen has learned the importance of nonviolence and peace.
  • Write about a family that is at peace.
  • Write about the things you do simply to maintain peace.
  • In a future where the world has achieved peace, write about the people that made it happen.
  • You are the opposite of peace. Suggest how peace could be achieved without the use of you.
  • What might have to happen to make peace real in the world?
  • How can we promote peace in the school?
  • Write a poem about peace.
  • Write a list of reasons that peace is important.
  • Write about how you can encourage peace in your neighbourhood.
  • Two lovers are warring between each other over a material object. Use the breaking point as the catalyst for how you will achieve world peace.
  • Describe a place of peace.
  • You are at a protest. Write about peace or protesting.
  • Write a scary story about the possibility of a lack of peace.
  • The main character commits either an act of war or of peace, and it changes his/her life in a profound way.
  • How do you seek opportunities to reconcile with others?
  • How can a newly married couple achieve peace in their home after they have just moved in?
  • Challenge world leaders to read a specific book that promotes peace.
  • Write about a leader who destroyed the peace.
  • Peace can be found, if only we learn to walk through the darkness.
  • Write how you would handle an extremely angry person. What if this person is violent? How would you de escalate?
  • What conflict need you resolve in order to establish peace?
  • The world is going to end in 5 years. Write about what happens today at school.
  • What happens if the fight you dreamed of never starts?
  • What does peace mean to you?
  • Someone challenges your idea of peace. What do you do?
  • The school day, about to end, a student threatens to bring a gun to school the next day and start a fight. It’s your job to make sure they do not try to cause problems, being the bearer of peace.
  • Someone stole from you. Demand justice for the wrongdoing.
  • When horrible acts of war occur, people question why such tragedy exists and how to make the world a better place.
  • Write about a time when you successfully improved the working environment.
  • Write about a time when peace was hard to come by.
  • Does peace result when one side wins over the other? Can real peace ever exist if this is the case?
  • Write about how someone would lose their peace.
  • Imagine if you could introduce a world rule or law where everyone had to keep peace in each other’s hearts. What’s that like?
  • Think about how you react when you see injustice and violence in the world. Now think about how you would react if you were put in charge of making the world peaceful.
  • Write about an argument you had with a sibling where the more abusive person was you.
  • During war time, your country sends you to deliver some food to the civilians, and even with the language barrier, you try to impose peace to the people you are helping.
  • Alice, who is a super-genius, wants peace, but others around her are restless. Write how you think Alice will overcome relocations.
  • Write about how difficult it is currently to bring about world peace.
  • A person worked hard for someone dear to them. They can help this person achieve their dreams, but in doing so, they put their own dream at risk. How do they decide to use their resources?
  • A dispute breaks out between siblings.
  • There is a war raging on the planet you live on. What would you have to do to make the world a peaceful place?
  • Write about something inspiring about peace.
  • Write about how you would promote peace in your life.
  • What’s the best way to achieve world peace?
  • That peaceful feeling you get from forgiveness.
  • Write about the benefits of peace.
  • Two sides in a war find out they are blood-related.
  • Write about how you go about reading your work to an audience.
  • Write about a scene where you acted as a peacekeeper.
  • Why is peace so important? Write about it.
  • In a world that is torn apart by war, celebrate the idea of peace.
  • Write about a time you slacked and someone else got the job done. Write about what you learned from the experience.
  • How does one achieve peace through art or writing?
  • Is peace something that can be achieved instantly by making a world full of good people, or does it take time?
  • Write about how you can be a good citizen by promoting peace in your community. Someone might be encroaching on what belongs to you. How should you respond? An otherwise perfect relationship is threatened by one partner’s need to always be right. How can peace be restored? How would you integrate the poor? Write about the possibilities.
  • Write a personal essay about pursuing peace in your life.
  • Religion causes many issues between people. It makes peace hard to achieve. Write a paragraph stating how peace could be found in this area.
  • Write a story about a popular politician and how they promote peace.
  • Write about any violation of peace you’ve uncovered.
  • Write about a struggle for peace.
  • A peace treaty is about to be signed, but someone on the brink of war threatens to disrupt the peaceable proceedings.
  • A professional trapeze artist practises for the century’s greatest performance. Peace and tranquillity must prevail.
  • What can people do to be peacemakers?
  • People from around the world are creating rifts that won’t allow for peace. How will you make peace?
  • You need to stop a civil war from breaking out. What will you do?
  • A girl shares how conflict led to peace in her family.
  • A young person makes peace with a difficult situation she has experienced.
  • The world is a beautiful place, surrounded by water, trees, and majestic mountains. Your love for beauty allows you to spark peace by inspiring others to appreciate the world around them.
  • Suzannah Yasmina Duran lives in Trump’s America, which imposes limitations on immigrants such as her, which are extremely damaging to the migrant workers.
  • A leader keeps an eye out for signs of war and makes plans of how to neutralize the situation.
  • There’s a condition that’s ravaging the human population, and it’s up to all people to peacefully unite to defeat it.
  • What phrase or symbol should we take for the modern movement towards peace and goodwill?
  • What needs to be changed in the world to attain peace?
  • Write about the kind of peace you think we should have in the world.
  • Write about a time in history when peace was kept and write about the circumstances surrounding that peace.
  • In a dystopian future, a council plans for peace through aggressive military action. What would have to happen for peace to reign?
  • How would you achieve world peace through story writing?
  • Peace won’t form without intervention. Write about a time you stepped into the role of a peacekeeper.
  • Write about how to “silence the guns.”
  • Write about what life would be like if peace reigned throughout the world.
  • It’s sold as A Foolproof Peace Elixir and there are hordes of people who are lining up to buy it. After it all happened, do you think there is a better way?
  • Two sides are facing off, what will remain and wait for the battle to be fought?
  • Two leaders who constantly lashed out at each other have tried to find peace with each other during talks that were difficult, but led to an agreement that could possibly lead to lasting peace.
  • Write a scene where you experience controversy with your friends on what peace means.
  • Write a letter to your local government representative and urge him or her to keep the peace in your town.
  • Imagine a person who has risen above conflict and now helps others reach the same state.
  • Create a peace map not unlike the Lorraine map of Peace Treaty.
  • This is the moment when all conflicts will fade away, replaced by peaceful thoughts, words, and actions.
  • You had a dream that you were standing in front of a large crowd. What you had to say was going to bring about world peace. Write about it. Read this article for more ideas on how to provide writing prompts to your ESL students.
  • You are trapped in an area where war has recently erupted. This story is about you trying to get out of the area.
  • Does peace only exist in the world during times of great prosperity? Or can you have peace during a time of great loss?
  • A young girl is at war with her enemy over territory.
  • Global warming and war are destroying the Earth. Create a large scale treaty between nations, nations, and/or minorities.
  • The word peace is often mentioned in texts such as the Qur’an. Historical scholars may have different interpretations of the concept of peace. Explain.
  • The time of conflict in an off-world colony has come to an end. Describe how peace has returned and how life is going now.
  • Peace is about to be broken into and it’s up to you to stop it from happening.
  • What if both sides are in the wrong? What needs to happen in order to achieve peace?
  • How would you keep peace between two opposing parties, such as democracy and communism, in a world needing equal parts of each to run smoothly?
  • Words can help or hinder us during the quest for peace. What do we need to say to achieve world peace?
  • What is your peace process? Take us to specific moments just before, during or after conflict and reveal the drama of those events that led up to peace.
  • Write about your favourite place to meditate in peace.
  • What is the sign of peace? Why do we offer it to other people?
  • Destroyed homes. Ruined lives. A few people haven’t been affected by this loss. But now it’s up to them to create peace. Is it something they can do?
  • If you could help keep peace wherever you were, what would you do?
  • Write all about how to make yourself feel more peaceful. You may take any point of view. But what does peace feel like for the writer?
  • Describe your “world peace code”. What rules must your characters abide by in order for world peace to be achieved?
  • What would need to happen for international peace to occur?
  • Write about someone who spent an entire day trying to patch things up and resolve conflict.
  • What are some of the steps you could take to build peace?
  • Write about a character who stirs up peace or unrest.
  • A character is punished for actively making peace.
  • Stop a coup before it takes place, and therefore keep everyone peaceful.
  • Have you ever felt personally violated? Write your thoughts on what peace means to you after that incident.
  • A peaceful revolution could take place, and soon.
  • What story angles have you found to be especially remarkable?
  • In times of unrest and fighting, a machine of destruction is put in place to quell the fighting.
  • Write a short story about a time in your life when you completely lost your temper.
  • When the world is on the brink of destruction, a child must bring peace to the land.
  • Two nations have been at odds for hundreds of years, and a young woman tries to diffuse the tension.
  • Write about a historical or current battle. Surely peace could have been reached.
  • So out of peace there is war and out of jealousy and selfish ambition there is violence and disorder. But the wiser mind will make a straight path for its going out and will lay hold of peace.
  • It’s the calm after a long battle has finally subsided. Describe it.
  • An organization needs to create peace by projecting peaceful thoughts to others.
  • Write about a time when you forgave people that had hurt you.
  • This group of teens always strive to be at peace with one another.
  • Explain what needs to change for peace to occur.
  • There is a war raging on in the land. In your story, resolve this conflict by maintaining peace throughout the story line.
  • Someone is secretly stealing from others. Uncover and stop this threat to peace.
  • When a civil war breaks out, everything you know is gone. Write about the journey you take to find peace in this new place.
  • Write about an environment where peace can never exist.
  • A man must keep peace in the jungle.
  • A hostile alien species attacks Earth. After the dust settles, you’re tasked with keeping peace between the two races.
  • Write about times that there have been peace or times when peace wasn’t present.
  • Describe a peaceful world.
  • An argument is about to break out. You need to find the right words to prevent people from fighting.
  • Without knowing the words in your native tongue, role-play as an emissary from an alien civilization who has come to Earth to tell us how to maintain world peace.
  • A character, perhaps the protagonist, has to fight a war against a tyrannical ruler.
  • Instincts and inner demons are holding a character back in achieving peace.
  • Write a letter to someone to thank them for promoting peace.
  • Write about the life of a young woman who dedicated her life to serving God and promoting peace.
  • Write about the last time you experienced a moment of world peace.
  • Ever been in a situation where it seemed like the world was ending? Write about how you handled it.
  • What if the cost of peace was your soul?
  • A war is fought over someone who wants peace.
  • Come up with two or more groups of people that could benefit from peace and write about what would need to happen.
  • Write about a peace agreement you experienced when you were younger. Did it last?
  • While other countries at war abound, the people inside your country’s borders are learning to work peacefully together.
  • A writer’s Muse wakes them up in the middle of the night. The flow of energy coming through is so powerful that it’s disrupting the Muse. This energy must be allowed to move through quickly. The Muse orders the writer to create a catalyst which will help others and get the process over with quickly. However, when the writer uses the catalyst mindlessly, the Muse must step in to stop the writer before chaos sets in.
  • Write about the differences between peace and war.
  • Revolutionary forces fight against a corrupt government. What would you do while a nation divided, blown apart by war and clashing armies, to bring peace after a revolution?
  • Write about a friend who helps you keep the peace.
  • Ted Bundy’s birthday is today. Write about how you would have wished the execution to occur instead of his birthday being spent on death row.
  • Nationality doesn’t matter when there’s peace to be kept.
  • Write a story about an everyday person who promotes peace in his or her everyday life.
  • Create a story about world peace.
  • Write about why peace is so important to you.
  • A contemporary non-fiction essay about declaring peace is due in ten minutes…
  • How has war affected you?
  • The road to peace often seems full of conflict, but peace on Earth is worth fighting for.
  • A person from the far future is trying to find out what kept the Earth from being destroyed by a nuclear war.
  • Writing about peace in history
  • Peace is slipping away from everyone. Your characters must make a push to keep the peace from being destroyed.
  • Write about a time when you determined that fighting wouldn’t lead to peace, but peace would lead to fighting.
  • How can a conflict in your own life be resolved peacefully?
  • An observer from a neighboring galaxy has decided that there needs to be peace in the world, and she will take whatever steps are necessary to accomplish this goal.
  • Write a letter to a current or former political leader about how they could promote world peace.
  • What do you do when people don’t act violently?
  • Write about the many ways you can express peace in your life.
  • How should one handle conflict in the workplace?
  • New world order has been established. Peace is now the rule. Write about how censorship applies to the newly peaceful world.
  • By day, a superhero works to keep the peace in her town. By night, she looks for adventure.
  • An attack has occurred. One man who ran into a thicket of bushes is clicking and clunking. Write about the unresolved shame he carries with him.
  • The world has finally achieved absolute peace. Now what? Now the people must find other sources of entertainment.
  • Write a reflection on an event in your family’s history where peace was more important than anything else.
  • Write about the traits that foster peace. Or how you might teach peace to children.
  • Write about something your mother taught you about peace.
  • A father describes what needs to happen in order to achieve everlasting peace.
  • Write an alternate version of history focusing on what would have happened if peace talks were successful.
  • Write about how school can promote world peace.
  • Write about a fictional leader’s quest to establish peace in the lands.
  • What role do you play to promote world peace?
  • Describe how a large-scale battle would end in your circumstance.
  • A person is determined to do what it takes in order to keep the peace.
  • Imagine you have been called to plan a celebration for world peace day. What would it look like?
  • What must your character do to get peace?
  • Tell the story of a person or event that brought peace to a specific place or community, past or present.
  • Write about a time you talked to resolve a conflict.
  • Write about a peaceful conclusion to a tense situation.
  • How can someone maintain peaceful interactions in a sometimes-hostile and cruel world?
  • What are the main obstacles to peace in the world?
  • In a fantasy world, you save the world from destruction and peace once again returns to the people.
  • There was once a time when there was peace in the world.
  • Someone special is spending time trying to maintain world peace.
  • Choose something in your life that causes conflict and write about how this could affect the world if it sparked conflict.
  • Write about what you think peace really is.
  • Write about a leader who had a lot to do with the promotion of peace. Imagine you are a chronicler in his army. You’ve never actually met him, but you recall tales of his goodness.
  • Since you’re the one to keep the world safe, how would you do it?
  • Write about the meaning of peace in your life. “Peace writing can contribute to the process of healing a country, a community, a nation’s collective emotional wounds, and a person’s internal psychological wounds, including symptoms of post-traumatic stress syndrome. Peace writing can help re-establish a sense of connection, hope and meaning for peoples on all sides of ongoing, intractable conflicts,” Dr. Smith said.
  • Write a fairy tale! In your story, there must be a peace advocate type of character.
  • What does peace feel like? Describe how peace feels like.
  • At a peace rally, something goes terribly wrong. How do conflict resolution groups manage this incident?
  • Talk about what gives you peace.
  • One of your friends is about to fight with another friend, and you must do something to avert conflict.
  • A woman’s daydreams take her on an adventure where she saves the world from an enemy who is intent on destruction. What can you do when someone is striking out at you?
  • Where can you find peace?
  • Have you ever personally felt torn between peace and war/conflict? If so, how were you resolved?
  • You need to convince your peers that peace is better than war.
  • A dramatic story about peace during a time of war.
  • Write about how you have worked to promote peace.
  • Write about a small town. How is peacekeeping different than in other parts of the world?
  • Write about an object that brings a sense of peace to you.
  • The creation of peace in one’s own family.
  • Share your thoughts about the anti-war movement.
  • You are asked to give up pieces of territory and valuable resources to help foster world peace.
  • Write about the wisest woman in the world. Those whom she inspired, those who admired her, how she changed things, and how she taught peace.
  • What influences people to stay in peace?
  • Write about a time when you helped to bring people together when they were fighting with each other.
  • Write about what world peace would look like.
  • The pen is mightier than the sword. What if the conflict could be resolved through words rather than fighting?
  • Write about some steps that could be taken to keep peace between two lovers.
  • Do you ever lose yourself in the hustle and bustle of the world? Describe an experience that you had and how it relates to mediation, keeping peace in one’s self and surroundings.
  • You preach love, but your actions cause violence. How can you reconcile both?
  • A man is trying to capture the evil genius. His hopes for world peace must hang in this cat and mouse game.
  • Write about a time when you couldn’t choose peace and found it dissatisfying.
  • A peacemaker tries to avoid a vicious dictator with an ax to grind.
  • You’re working at a job where you help to keep the peace. Describe the difficulties and responsibilities of this job.
  • How would you deal with an angry person?
  • Submit a story in which you are the Peacekeeper.
  • How can people around the world better work together?
  • Write about a time when you felt like the peacemaker.
  • Peace on earth is a common Christmas theme. Use your imagination to write about peace during a holiday season or seasonally.
  • A conversation about protecting the environment and preventing war.
  • Someone is bringing chaos, and it’s up to you to promote peace with your writing.
  • A peaceful, easy-going man is forced to make a difficult decision to promote peace.
  • Imagine what it would be like for people to live side by side peacefully, with no conflict.
  • The world turns black and white because that’s the only way peace will continue.
  • Write a love story about the end of a war.
  • What sort of events need to occur in order for peace to prevail on earth?
  • Write about one big specific conflict in your life.
  • Tell a story about a lifelong pursuit of peace.
  • Make it a law that everyone needs to be nice to each other.
  • A child receives a snowball for Christmas – she knows that this is an olive branch to the enemy.
  • Someone you love is at the point of violence. Write about how you would work to maintain peace.
  • The seasons of the year create balance. Structured responses and schedules create order. What element would you change to bring peace to the world?
  • An angry banker wants to riot for their rights.
  • Why do we need peace? Is it more important than adventure?
  • Let your fantasy part of your brain run wild and imagine you are part of the Keyblade Master organization that keeps peace.
  • Even in the best marriages, there still needs to be work done to maintain peace.
  • Experience the feelings of being at war. Write about this moment when it kicks into a more full-blown war.
  • No one believes in peace anymore. It is up to you to prove them wrong.
  • Write about a personal conflict you are experiencing.
  • Write about a moment in the afterlife when a man realizes how his talents can be used to promote peace on earth.
  • Should there be a war or should there be peace?
  • What will it take to achieve world peace?
  • In post-war times, a mob is ready to hang a man who may or may not have committed a crime. The man says he has a child who needs him, who will do anything it takes to save him from the noose. Write about why the child decides to go save him in spite of his  misdeeds.
  • Write about your life when peace exists in your country.
  • Peace in terms of world, personal, and spiritual meaning.
  • A school is forced to support peace. Think of all the difficulties that arise.
  • Describe the version of peace that you live and seek to promote.
  • A ceasefire between armies has been signed, but whether peace can be upheld is a different story.
  • Many people point to the fact that Humans have had conflicts going on ever since they came into existence, but others disagree. What’s your take on this?
  • What are some examples of peaceful small communities or areas?
  • Write about a specific fight scene OR situation that would result in a tremendous amount of peace.
  • For this writing exercise, we need to imagine ourselves as beings of pure peace. If you needed to communicate with a human, how could you do so?
  • Write about a character with a shattered heart.
  • Participate in a meeting held to discuss world peace.
  • Write about a peaceful place near you.
  • If your school was caught in an unlawful conflict, you’d be held accountable to resolve it in a peaceful manner. What would be the outcome?
  • What one piece-based change could be made that would improve the lives of the majority of people everywhere?
  • What has broken the peace in your life?
  • A soldier escapes from a warzone and wants peace and peace only. He battles to cope with his surroundings.
  • Write about your experience with peace.
  • Write about a person who lived his life in peace.
  • For more interesting and writing prompts visit Powerful Prompts.
  • On the journey of life we bump into various people who are hindrances. What do we do when we are faced with so many hurdles? Write about it.
  • This article tells the story of a child caught in the crossfire of a battle. How do you help soothe the stress after war rages on?
  • A couple is moving on from a hard breakup and decide to go on separate spiritual journeys to gain wisdom and insight.
  • The possible consequences of picking a fight.
  • Write out a full perspective of peace. Write from the perspective of every character involved. What kind of details should be included?
  • There is a fist sized rock on the ground. Pick it up and take a good look at how heavy it is. Now drop it and write about the experience.
  • What would the world be like if peace reigned?
  • Does peace start at home? Explain how you can get your family to ‘get along’.
  • There is a peace conference. Most of the people only care about themselves or the money they’ll make. Who will save the world from war?
  • What do you wish for?
  • What are examples of how people in general cause peace?
  • A drought has led to wars around the world. Plant rain making plants and keep everyone at peace with your magical abilities.
  • Describe how the world would be different if everyone practiced peace.
  • Write about an argument you had with someone and how you became friends again.
  • Peace is chased away by actions of war. It is up to you to bring it back.
  • When an alien scout lands, talk about how the rest of the world responds. Write this as a warning to us, or as a potential honor.
  • Someone grabs the remote and changes the channel. Why do you think they did this?
  • How would you describe the absence of conflict?
  • Write about a world that has a peaceful culture overall.
  • Explain some reasons why peace on earth will never occur.
  • Make a news item about an event that pointed to peace—what it was and what contributed to the peace.
  • Write about what you would do to help to achieve world peace.
  • Write about how you ended a rivalry with a friend.
  • In the middle of World War II, join in on the conversation between Winston Churchill and Hitler.
  • The main driving force behind war is the lack of peace.
  • Write about peace and war, peacemakers and warmongers.
  • Imagine that a day of peace happens without any military or conflict of any kind and write about what you recall of events that day.
  • How does writing about peace help promote world peace?
  • Timeline of events leading to the creation of extremely effective peace treaties, laws, and practices across the world.
  • Write about why you believe in peace.
  • Write about the first time two people met and formed a deep bond that fueled their mutual fight for change, peace and love.
  • Write about a time when you had just started dating someone new and it was very peaceful and easy.
  • A community helps to bring money to the Palestinian people.
  • A child wants to know what peace means to you.
  • Murderous rioters are rising up against innocent people. Write about what peace means to you in light of this.
  • A young man sets out on a world tour and meets an elderly man who believes that the world is on the brink of war. It is now up the young man to prevent war.
  • Write a story or list about world peace. It may or may not be a story that involves people. It may or may not have a figurative tone.
  • Think of a specific situation that is currently overflowing with conflict. How can you keep the peace?
  • Given the awful fight between his parents, a boy decides to stay neutral in order to help maintain peace.
  • You are talking with someone about how you could achieve peace in every home.
  • A soldier reflects on what peace means to him during wartime.
  • Write about a positive aspect of peace.
  • It’s your job to recreate an ultimate plea for world peace- both verbally and in writing.
  • Show how making a choice for peace is a tough decision for one character.
  • You can find additional writing prompts under the topic Life
  • Write about how you would produce peace within yourself while enduring a conflict.
  • Wars plague one world. Peace is slow to come. You and your friends must make time to celebrate peace.
  • Write about what peace represents to you.
  • Write about a potential or possible peace prize winner for your story.
  • The world has been rocked by war. While visiting an area in need, imagine a scenario in which you can promote peace.
  • Many around feel sadness and hopelessness due to terrible surrounding wars. One person stays positive and attempts to initiate a domino effect of peace.
  • A village is hated and has many enemies. What they lack is someone who is promoting peace and brotherhood.
  • Write about a peaceful place.
  • Write about how a national holiday might look and feel like, designed for the purpose of maintaining peace.
  • Imagine the future where there is peace on Earth. What does the world look like?
  • War? What war? Peace, here we come.
  • Write about your ideal world of peace.
  • In your view who is the world’s greatest peacemaker? How can others follow in their footsteps?
  • Write about a character who is winning the fight against evil.
  • People discuss matters of peace during a gathering. One comment on the list just flies off the wall.
  • A promise of peace was made, but wasn’t fulfilled. How can a promise of peace be conveyed, and who can you rely on to keep it?
  • Write about how you would instill peace in children.
  • Someone in your life has taught you about peace. How have they taught you about it, and what impact have they had on your life?
  • In a time of conflict, the leader calls for peace.
  • Peace can’t exist without justice. Write about what form justice should take.
  • Write about how a neighbor’s lack of peace negatively affects you.
  • Write about a visit to an all-peace school.
  • A journey begins in a war-torn country and ends with peace and redemption.
  • Write from the perspective of a stranger who has never seen someone cry until they have been told about all of the people in the world that are starving, being kept as slaves or being subjected to political corruption.
  • Write about peace you’ve experienced in your life and how it came about.
  • Write about a peaceful day you had. How would you feel to know that the day would be so peaceful at the time, but that things would spiral out of control, and peace would not last?
  • Peace is what embodies you. Share something about your sense of peace.
  • A park ranger has an eye-opening experience in a national park.
  • Write about two characters who have reached a peace treaty.
  • The Eiffel Tower is caught in an intense battle between freedom and peace. You have the power to show which side will win.
  • A monster is locked away in a cage and because of it, the town is peaceful. A young girl claims this monster is a witch and they come up with a plan to set it free. What does the monster represent that is keeping the town safe? Write about how they unlocked its cage and release it to make their wish come true, believing that this beast will destroy their village.
  • Business, personal and spiritual relationships all need literacy. Share your thoughts on what you believe needs to be done to promote peace.
  • A dispute broke out between two individuals or groups of people. You have been chosen to settle it peacefully. All that is required is a little compromise from both parties.
  • Write about the last time you saw someone break the rules. Write about trying to stop them.
  • Write about how you would prevent others from feeling sick and tired of the state of the world we live in.
  • There is an impending war. What can you do to keep the peace?
  • In a world of hate, the length of a handshake can differentiate whether peace is found or not.
  • Peace is something that we all need, but it’s not always an option.
  • The story of someone after an attack has happened, explaining to the jury how they feel after that attack.
  • What are some of the steps you’ve taken to keep your own country peaceful?
  • A toned down version of a fight is about to happen but your character prevents it.
  • Write about a conflict within your community that you helped to solve peacefully.
  • The world could always use more beauty and less ugliness.
  • Write about the most peaceful interaction you have experienced.
  • People mistakenly labor under the illusion that peace and war are opposites. They are in fact, one and the same.
  • Write about how you are promoting peace in your own life.
  • Conflicts are a part of life that none of us can avoid. Is there any specific conflict you are concerned about or are in the midst of right now?
  • Talk about a time when peace was something you were able to maintain when there was conflict.
  • A war photographer is haunted by his past.
  • A vaccine or natural immunity could cure the world of war and conflict. Write about the aftermath, how war and violence was dealt with.
  • Someone you respect does everything they can to stir up conflict and discord. What will you have to do in order to ensure that you don’t fall into their trap?
  • How do you keep the peace in your home? As a parent, what steps can you take so that your children have a feeling of peace?
  • Your goal is world peace. Use a variety of writing techniques to get this point across.
  • Write about why a person does not believe in peace.
  • Write about a stable ruler or world leader who rules with an iron fist.
  • Freedom is a freedom that many people take for granted. Write about all that freedom buys you, and conversely all that it loses protects.
  • Life is filled with turmoil all around us. What ways can you find to promote your own piece in this world
  • The conflict in Africa or the conflict in the Middle East. How can the issues be settled?
  • Give an account of peace or an event that promoted peace.
  • Write about how you would make peace with someone that you haven’t been able either solve your problem or forgive.
  • Have you ever had trouble figuring out exactly how you felt about something? Now you have no choice but to write about the issue.
  • A journey longs for completion. All obstacles are in the way. A person takes on the role of peacemaker in order to alleviate the travel to the final destination.
  • In lieu of war, two opposing leaders decide to negotiate a peace treaty.
  • A peace conference has gone terribly awry.
  • Write about an object that symbolizes peace. What does it look like and what does it do?
  • Spiteful people are attacking each other at every opportunity. Write about maintaining peace all the same.
  • You are running into battle in an attempt to maintain peace.
  • Are you familiar with the name, Mahatma Gandhi? When the British colonized India, Mahatma Gandhi pushed for non-violence and peaceful protests, which helped them win their independence. Now, you too can bring about peace in your community.
  • Explain why world peace is never going to occur.
  • What major issues or conflicts seem impossible to reach a resolution with? How could you help these situations?
  • Write about what you would do to ensure peace in your neighborhood.
  • Someone in your family is about to join the military but won’t stop talking about how much killing actually upsets them.
  • Who is most important to keeping peace?
  • A young boy is torn between peace and war. Write about his choice and the events that lead up to it.
  • Write about how you would live in a world without peace.
  • Your character is awaiting a scheduled execution. They reflect on their life and reach an important conclusion. Write that conclusion.
  • What steps should be taken to promote peace?
  • Were you there when… Everything went wrong – and the only way to restore order was through violence?
  • Write a scene from the perspective of a person that loves peace above all else.
  • Write about your vision of heaven. What kind of perpetual peace could exist there?
  • Four people of different religious beliefs have to keep the peace.
  • Have you been a peacemaker in the world?
  • Write about how you and your community would maintain peace and quiet in a storm.
  • Write about a fight that you’re currently having with someone. How can you compromise to promote peace?
  • Poems on peace should center around positive ways of hope and change.
  • How does an attempt at peace end, for better or worse?
  • What would the world be like if violence never existed? How would we get there?
  • What happens to a society that doesn’t fight for their previous beliefs upon being given proof that they’re wrong? Will their differences ultimately tear them apart? Or will they maintain their beliefs in spite of what they’ve been told?
  • The only way for peace to occur is for those in conflict to make an effort to move away from historical grudges.
  • After a big war in your world, it’s time to make peace. Write about the conversation between the leaders of the nations.
  • Write a letter to someone close to you about making peace with them.
  • What has to be done to rid this nation of its inner conflict? You have three days to bring peace.
  • Drawing and/or describing peace.
  • A stranger takes you into his confidence and explains why the world is in such great turmoil, and what needs to happen to bring peace about.
  • Write about the development of peace in a violent society. For example, end the violence by showing them the beauty of art.
  • The civil war paused and the two sides found peace…as best as they could.
  • Imagine if you grew up with a strange, little item that would change your life forever.
  • Is there peace where you are? Describe it in a small essay. Share your hopes and dreams with others on the topic of peace.
  • Write about how you would be the voice for the voiceless.
  • You’re at an all-night party. You’re exhausted and ready for bed. The music is loud and everyone else is still awake. Good luck getting any sleep.
  • List all the ways a community copes with deprivation.
  • Write about an ideal society where there is peace.
  • The world may be divided into three sections, represented by three highly aggressive countries. They’re all looking for peace, but by using different methods. The five people who play a part in this piece can change the mindset of these three leaders to promote peace for their country and the world.
  • Write about how you would restore a broken relationship.
  • When a conflict happens, the easiest solution is to run and hide. What does a person do when it is his/her responsibility to make peace happen?
  • Make a list of all the terrible things conflict can bring.
  • Write about the strengths your character has that will help him or her keep the peace.
  • Maintain peace even in the face of uncertainty.
  • I am currently compiling a list of 365 writing topics for each day of the year. Topic lists like these are available for sale here .
  • How would you bring peace to your school? Your community?
  • What is the meaning of peace? What words best describe the peace that we’ve fought for?
  • Step into the roles of leaders in four different time periods for an entire school day. Write a paragraph about each of your experiences.
  • The use of peace symbols is often for commercial purposes. Write about a time you saw one of those symbols used to encourage peace, rather than as part of a marketing campaign.
  • Write about how someone else you know would promote peace in the world. Or, write about how you would avoid conflict. Or, write about how someone you know would avoid conflict.
  • Write a story about a protagonist who feels anger until he/ she learns the secret of peace.
  • If you could proclaim peace on Earth for your life today, what would you do and how would you feel?
  • As a bridge between nations, you are tasked with keeping the peace.
  • What do you say to someone to convince them conflict isn’t the only way to solve their problems?
  • Is there any proof that the world will ever be at peace?
  • Write about a vision you have had about peace breaking out.
  • Write about the personal struggle with keeping the peace.
  • What differences do you see between peace and war?
  • Write about making peace with the past. It could reveal itself in some symbolic way.
  • The story begins with the best argument you can muster to promote peace.
  • How can art, music, and poetry bring peace in a tense environment?
  • Including meditation, self-improvement, music–whatever you like–explain to a friend how to promote peace in the world.
  • What makes a country peaceful?
  • What is the most difficult battle to fight for peace?
  • Tell your whole world how you feel about peace.
  • You identify an opportunity to resolve a conflict. Write what happens.
  • In this story, you’ve been given the task to restore peace.
  • World peace has been achieved. Now what? How will you create a long-lasting peace? How can you make staying at peace easy and fulfilling? Go preach your ideas. The end.
  • Write about what peace means within your family.
  • In today’s society, peace sometimes seems like a far off dream. The reality is anything but that. Consider how growing up in a time that has known peace will make achieving peace easier for future generations.
  • something, somone
  • With peace in the world, humanity progresses much faster than anyone ever imagined. Space travel is common. Races are unified. What do they do next?
  • Who is the most peaceable character you’ve ever read about? Describe him/her and write why he/she is so great.
  • Something bad is happening and you want to keep peace with this other person, but you know things will reach a boiling point after that. It’s up to you to keep peace and comfort between that person before things get worse.
  • Write about a zero tolerance policy for violence.
  • A once peaceful land is overtaken by dark forces. Wander a land stricken with discord and disharmony. How will you bring peace back to this land?
  • The audience, though smart, have unethical tactics, but one stands up to the standards of the audiences.
  • You are sent on a secret mission to the enemy’s camp to keep the peace.
  • Make an account of events as if the character were keeping friends and family together through difficult times. Convey an underlying sense of peace throughout his or her experience.
  • You’ve been keeping peace among the world, but now evil is threatening to overtake your people.
  • A neighbourhood is worked up over some event. You’re the one who has to calm them down.
  • Write a scene about two people on opposite sides of the paper war scenario and finally coming to some form of peace and understanding.
  • Is peace through war ever possible? Can peace be reached through violence?
  • Share a story about when you gained a deep understanding of peace.
  • Nominate leaders who can bring peace to the world.
  • Everyone deserves peace. Write about who could use some peace in their life.
  • You are the unsung and unknown force holding everything together. Without you, the world would fall apart. What does that feel like?
  • Write about a conflict you are having with another person, or write about the person who is causing the conflict.
  • Describe the most peaceful place on Earth. Write about that place and what it’s like. Write a description of your perfect, peaceful moment ever.
  • In order to stop a riot, characters or NPCs resort to extreme measures, including violence.
  • What is the biggest peace problem in your country, in your community, or even in your relationship with yourself?
  • Write about how a man or woman keeps the peace.
  • Write about a time in which you think your efforts resulted in world peace.
  • Write a story about how the Beatles helped the world become peaceful.
  • A person is trying to break into the peaceful society you live in. You must resist their hostility.
  • Someone has been bullying you at school. You have the chance to end that last day by maintaining peace.
  • How is a world without war or conflict? Explain why.
  • A world without conflict would be ideal. Describe a way that would make this possible.
  • There’s a special man on whom you have had a crush since you were young. One day you meet him. Will this story have a happy ending?
  • Write about a world that is free of strife. What would it look like and what sorts of things would people do with their time?
  • Write about why you feel the need to protect peace in the world.
  • Imagine that there was a machine that gave you a wish for how the world could be changed. Change one thing and write about what happens next.
  • How effective are the three articles of the Geneva Convention for maintaining peace?
  • Someone gives a message that is very peaceful and loving–and nobody listens. How come?
  • What are some things you take for granted? Explain.
  • Something is about to go terribly wrong. It would take real effort to prevent disaster. Write about your character’s efforts to promote peace.
  • Many conflicts in the world are based on resources. What resources do we need less of to achieve peace and long-term security?
  • A strange force is preventing peace in the world. This young heroine must resist it.
  • You are in a future society with an abundance of machines. Your job is to monitor these machines and prevent them from causing global chaos.
  • Write about a city that has declared a nationwide ban on war. All soldiers involved were forced to leave their countries and roam a deserted landscape, where they are to live until they die.
  • In a world without laws, groups claim power for their own reasons. One man refuses to give in to them.
  • Write about what you think peace means to God.
  • If being a wise leader is equivalent to restoring peace, what does that mean for you as a leader?
  • How has a difficult time in your life affected your thoughts about peace?
  • How would you resist war and make sure it never happens again?
  • The only way to put an end to the conflict in your homeland is to leave and never return. How do you cope with the loss of your home?
  • A dispute between two nations has led many people of both countries to engage in violence against their own people. It’s up to you to make a decision that keeps the peace.
  • It has dawned on you that the conflict you’ve witnessed all comes back to you.
  • Write about a bully who decides to use his strength to promote peace instead of aggression.
  • You are asked to be a peace mediator. Alone, in a dark room, you must generate a solution. The lives of thousands depend on it.
  • Write about a peace walk that you participated in.
  • Did you ever see an event where peace and understanding seemed impossible? What would that be like to see? What was it?
  • Read the latest news to find an example of conflict and peace. How did it turn out?
  • Write about what kind of peace you seek in your life?
  • Think about what is necessary in order to have peace. What is the goal for peace and how might you meet that?
  • After researching a particular issue, write about how the problem could be solved.
  • Create a song that describes the steps necessary to achieve world peace.
  • Obviously, when you’re writing about peace, you’re not going to advocate war. The themes of opposing ideas figuring out a common ground is what makes peace so important. All world issues and conflicts center around the topic of peace. All world leaders are concerned about it.
  • What action would you take to spread peace, starting in your community? Write about a character who is driven by peace.
  • What would peace triggers in the world look like?
  • We search for peace, but don’t see the opportunities to promote it right in front of us.
  • What would you do if you knew peace was just around the corner?
  • The word “peace” is thrown around a lot. Define it.
  • A video of a peace march spreads like a wildfire. Let us write about it.
  • The world is filled with violence and conflict. Choose a fictional location to write about and how you would prevent conflict and violence in your chosen location.
  • Write about why people should strive for universal peace.
  • Write about what you would to bring peace to the world.
  • Describe the scene where two enemies realize peace is more important than war.
  • An anti-war activist is feeling anger about their cause and does some graffiti or throws a small object from a roof, which of course causes a reporter or two to show up for a press conference…
  • The story begins long before your main character is born. Can you create a scene where someone is trying to bring peace to a tumultuous craze?
  • Write for two minutes about a time where a person brought peace to your life.
  • How can you keep the peace in your home when there is conflict?
  • Write about a planet that is in serious turmoil because it’s inhabitants are addicted to food.
  • A conflict that is brewing at the beginning of your story ultimately does not break out. In what way does everyone benefit?
  • A war is about to break out. It is up to you to stay true to your beliefs for peace.
  • Write about a time in which you and another person worked together to maintain peace.
  • What is the swiftest way to achieve world peace?
  • A story about a single act of extreme violence can capture the world’s attention. Write about the person who comes toward the conflict to stop it, no matter the cost.
  • Your whole life changes the minute you befriend a person from a different race, culture, belief system, or walk of life. Now write about that.
  • A bully has discovered that picking on someone works. He’s going to keep it up because it continues to be effective. Someone wants to make him stop now.
  • Write about why peace is important
  • Write about what peace really means to you.
  • A peaceful community comes to a sudden halt when violence strikes close to home.
  • The search for peace–there may be nothing more noble, but what if peace cannot be reached?
  • In your community, there is a man who speaks words of hate and anger. Everyone listens to him. Write how you will bring peace to the town.
  • What peace do you need in order to live better?
  • Write a story about a bunch of warriors going out to achieve peace.
  • You are leading two enemy races toward peace.
  • Write a scene where everyone is at peace.
  • How would people feel and what would life be like in a society that was at peace?
  • Write about a person who saves the world from disaster.
  • Your society is ruled by a dictator who demands loyalty. You love peace, and refuse to join the group who wants to start a war.
  • The wind sweeps through the valley, carrying the souls of the people no longer inhabiting their bodies.
  • A woman in the home needs to find a way to de-escalate a conflict.
  • Write about someone or something that handles a difficult situation with grace and peace.
  • What if you had the power to create peace in the world?
  • A soldier has finally returned home. But he is no longer fit for battle.
  • A peace treaty was brought into the room where a meeting was taking place. Everyone signed the document with the exception of one person. Write about a day in his life.
  • The Allies won World War II, peace is upon the land. Write something from the perspective of Hitler about how he is keeping the peace or not being a threat.
  • Describe a time when you brought peace between two people.
  • Describe a peaceful world from the Creator’s point of view.
  • You and your friends are going on a hike. Where was the last place you were at peace? Why was it a peaceful place and how can you recreate that peace inside you?
  • The world is lacking peace and harmony after constant pollution and war. It’s up to someone special to restore the balance for an island community.
  • If peace is very important to you, write about what you’ve done to promote peace.
  • Your character has looked for peace but has only found disputes. Your character is now forced to take up arms!
  • Write about how three separate people can each work toward the same common goal of establishing peace in the world.
  • What do people take as “peace?” We know what we mean when we say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Thanksgiving,” but what does peace really mean? Whether it’s a time of year or a culture, it varies from person to person. What does peace mean to you?
  • Imagine you have been given the opportunity to bring world peace. What would you do?
  • You have twelve wishes. Two of them are used to make your city a peaceful, loving place. The remaining ten to make the rest of the world a peaceful place.
  • There is a new war going on. The sides are split. Is there a better way to resolve the conflict?
  • Many organizations aim to restore peace to conflict torn regions. Which organization is most deserving?
  • One reason for conflict is necessarily feelings of envy and inferiority. Do you think war can be ended by addressing these causes?
  • Fear of war secures peace. What do you feel is the greatest threat to peace and how do you propose we prepare to cope?
  • You’re new in town, but everyone is welcoming and respectful to you. What a delightful experience! How lucky you are to have found such a peaceful world.
  • A cute animal goes about making the world a better place.
  • An elderly woman who was born during wartime needs relief. A calm descends upon her.
  • With the planet divided into many independent regions, a princess cannot roam the world freely without finding trouble. Contains drama elements and action, as the people are fighting even in peace.
  • It’s hard for you to stay peaceful around your family. Write about one specific time when your family tried to pull you into a fight.
  • Write about a nonconformist who somehow keeps the peace despite not doing what everyone expects.
  • Things have gotten out of hand. An example would be a nuclear war, or a world war. What will it take to prevent the end of civilization?
  • Write about how you would handle conflict in the world.
  • Your country is at war. Write about how you would promote peace within your nation.
  • Religion breeds war. The example of Jesus is more kind. How would the world work if we all worshipped Jesus?
  • Write about a peaceful world.
  • How would you handle difficult times in your relationship? Share your peace-keeping skills with us!
  • Write a story where peace is achieved through war.
  • A character wavers between right and wrong as she tries to promote peace.
  • Draw on your own experiences in life to tell a story about fighting against adversity in order to achieve peace.
  • In a world where people are constantly fighting each other, there is one person at the center of it all who is involved in a romance. Write about how this person somehow maintains world peace and still has time to be involved in a love affair.
  • An entrepreneur uses a method to bring peace to the world.
  • What ancient methods of conflict resolution do you think would work today to resolve world conflicts?
  • What would world peace look like? Write about what you would expect to happen to signal that peace exists.
  • God is asking you to help her bring world peace. Write about what you would do.
  • Write about how your family would be torn apart by a war.
  • Write about the fight for peace in your life.
  • Write about the biggest lie the world has ever known.
  • How would people know you live in a peaceful world?
  • Write a story about two kids who are best friends that fight.
  • Write about a time you peacefully resolved a problem where there was tension.
  • You’re a peace activist during wartime. Your job to spread peace is at stake!
  • The king has no interest in peace. He only desires that you go to war.
  • All wars start with a fight. Write about a fight you were a part of.
  • Describe peace using a landscape.
  • A witness who knew the accused sees a murder. No one believes that he really saw a murder.
  • Write about a character that is constantly trying to keep the peace but life is constantly throwing battles his/her way.
  • Who can stop a feud or conflict? Who is brave enough to bring a war to a stop?
  • Peace is being threatened in some manner. Write about how it is that peace is being threatened.
  • What do you consider a great peace activist to be like?
  • Defend your country from an army of an invading force. The fate of the world lies in your hands.
  • Write a story about a person or group working to improve peace in the world.
  • Write about how you would react to a global war or the threat of war occurring in your country.
  • There is a civil war brewing in your country. Write about how you would quell the conflict without bloodshed.
  • It is your duty to maintain peace between two feuding people or two feuding countries.
  • When a person is feeling stressed, they find themselves unable to keep the peace. They also find the people around them unable to keep the peace.
  • A soldier is overcome with anger and kills an unarmed civilian. What makes him react that way?
  • If you created a social network, your mission statement would be to promote world peace. Write about it.
  • In a war-torn world, write about the people who are risking their lives to be peacemakers.
  • A family is going through a conflict. They vow to love each other and be at peace.
  • A recent surge in violent crimes leads people in your community to recommend that extreme measures be taken to enforce peace and put a stop to such horrific events. Write about your response.
  • Using historical examples, how has peace been fought for in the course of human history?
  • Use this writing prompt and discuss how to use peaceful communication in order to resolve conflicts.
  • Write about what you think the word peace means to you and others.
  • Write about a time when you experienced peace amidst chaos.
  • A man has a strong reaction to a particular form of technology.
  • Rather than resolving problems by fighting, characters are encouraged to resolve problems in a peaceful manner.
  • There are a lot of people who say that peace doesn’t exist. Your job is to prove them wrong.
  • The most prosperous society in the world is one where devoted scientists are constantly searching for the best possibility of achieving peace in a world where war is a reality.

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Ten practical ways to build peace in your life and in the world around you

short essay about peace

(Reposted from: Taylor O’Connor. Medium, March 10, 2020. )

By Taylor O’Connor

“Ask yourself what you can do to make a difference, then take that action, no matter how large or small.” – Graça Machel

There’s a lot of people out there who care deeply about some social issue (or issues), but aren’t sure what they can do to make a difference. For many of us, it is hard to know how we can help. It’s easy to become disillusioned, and perhaps cynical.

The systems and structures that govern the world don’t seem to be working. There is war and poverty. There is discrimination, inequality, and violence. The issues are big. They are complex. It can be overwhelming.

The good news is that everyone can do something to make a difference. Sure, the problems are complex, but to be effective in making change the solutions must be simple. I hope the ideas shared below will inspire you and many others to take some action for peace and justice, no matter how large or how small.

How to build peace in your life and the world around you

Based on my personal experiences collaborating with peacebuilders around the world, here is a list of the ten things you can do to build a more peaceful and just world.

1. Calm your mind

Whether a seasoned advocate for peace or a young person aspiring to make a change, it’s always good to start with yourself. Calming your mind will help you be more patient. It will help you be present for those who need you the most. It will help you engage with challenging people. It will hone your intuition. It will allow you to moderate feelings of anger and other strong emotions when they arise. It will give you more insight to analyze complex issues associated with conflict and inequality. It will help you be more focused and creative in your efforts to build peace.

Here are some things you can do to calm your mind. Learn simple mindfulness practices. Embrace quiet time. Observe your emotions. Spend time in nature. Be mindful of your media consumption. Breathe. Find and use contemplative practices that work for you.

2. Simplify your life

Living a simple life will help clear your mind. You’ll have fewer distractions and be more able to focus on finding ways to address an issue (or issues) you care about. It will help you live your life with intention. And with a minimalist lifestyle you will reduce your carbon footprint. That’s a bonus!

Here are some ideas you can consider. Minimize your possessions. Don’t take on too many work commitments. Let go of social engagements that are not meaningful to you. Enjoy the simple things in life. Detach yourself from the idea that you have to be ‘busy.’ Reduce physical and mental clutter, let the distractions fall away, and focus on what is important to you.

3. Educate yourself (and teach others) about injustice and inequality, and about peace.

Systems that produce injustice and inequality rely on their ability to remain invisible to the general public. Those not directly harmed by injustice and inequality often have a difficult time understanding these things, let alone acknowledge their existence. To truly build a more just and equal society we need to bring these issues to the mainstream.

Educate yourself about the structures that produce injustice and inequality, and their historical legacy. Learn about historic struggles for justice and equality, about social movements, about critical events where progress was made, and of the real heroes that made it happen. Use this knowledge to generate creative and strategic ideas for action. Teach others and inspire change.

4. Orient your professional life towards peace

Are you a teacher? Are you teaching your students to critically analyze war, conflict, and inequality? Are you a healthcare worker? What are you doing to make the healthcare system more just? Are you a police officer? How is your department addressing the harmful effects of common policing practices? Are you an entrepreneur? Are you applying your skills to address a social cause? Are you working in the global aid industry? What are you doing to decolonize aid?

Consider the ways your work contributes to injustice and inequality, or the potential for it to contribute to peace and justice. Clarify what social issues you care about the most. Spend time to reflect and find ways to address these issues in your work and professional life. Seek opportunities to make change, or create new ones. Practical actions will be unique to each profession type.

5. Transform interpersonal conflicts

If you are working to build peace, you must become adept at transforming interpersonal conflicts. On principle, transforming conflict in relationships allows everyone to live happier, more fulfilling (thus peaceful) lives. At the same time, working to make change can be stressful, and you will likely encounter conflict with persons on your team who have different ideas about how to move forward. Also, when rattling the foundations of injustice and inequality, you will certainly come into conflict with persons who benefit from these. You must then be well prepared to engage constructively to transform these relationships, to mitigate opposition to your efforts to build peace.

When you encounter interpersonal conflicts, whether you are directly involved or if you are a third party, take them as an opportunity to develop your capacity to manage conflict. Develop techniques to transform these relationships, to make opponents your allies, and to build strong, cohesive teams working together on issues of shared concern. Develop and practice listening and communication skills. Learn techniques to open constructive dialogue. Mediate a conflict. Find ways to build trust. Search for common ground. Create opportunities for forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation.

6. Transform community spaces; or use them for peace learning and action

Transforming community spaces is a unique, often overlooked way to build peace and justice. We often neglect how community spaces contribute to inequality and promote war culture. How are people divided in your city? Does your city have a history of segregating minority communities? Do some communities have better schools or health facilities? Who has access to parks and natural spaces? In which neighborhoods are the waste facilities, power plants, and factories? Where are the museums and cultural sites? What about public monuments? Do they glorify war ‘heroes’ or do they inspire peace?

Here are some ideas you can use to transform spaces in your community or use them for peace learning and action. Preserve, protect, and promote diverse cultural and historic sites. Make community spaces accessible, inclusive, and family-friendly. Reclaim parks, plazas, and walkways. Create shared spaces. Use community spaces for peace learning. Do a community art project. Remove monuments to war ‘heroes’ and bigots. Build monuments to peace heroes.

7. Transform structures tied to the dynamics of war, violence, injustice, and inequality, or withdraw resources and support for war.

Warfare is not possible without a high degree of organization and immense amounts of resources. If we are to abolish war, the structures and institutions of the State that create war abroad and state violence at home must be transformed. Money and resources that feed war must be removed. Likewise, inequality and injustice are a product of government institutions, public policies, and economic systems. To create a more just and equal society requires substantial structural and policy change that strikes to the core of how our societies operate.

Here are some ideas to transform the structures tied to the dynamics of war, violence, injustice, and inequality. Depending on your position and level of influence, your actions may range from voting, to advocacy, to direct policy/institution reform. Demilitarize defense and policing. Use military and police for peaceful purposes. Mobilize for incisive criminal justice reform. Divert funds for war and allocate them for education, health care, social services, diplomacy, peace, arts, and culture. Create laws that regulate the production and sale of weaponry at the national and international levels. Divest from companies, governments, individuals, and institutions that promote/profit from war. Resist paying taxes for war.

8. Disrupt narratives that justify war and rationalize inequality.

As children, we learn a history littered with stories glorifying war. We learn that violence is justified, even dignified. We are inspired by war heroes we read about in history books. Our religious leaders provide the military with their blessings. Political leaders craft lies that justify war, and media outlets provide an echo chamber. Likewise, these institutions produce countless rationalizations of inequality. Historic injustice and inequality are whitewashed in schools. We create the illusion that people become rich and successful only from their own volition. We obscure the vast inequalities that provide easy pathways to success for some while constructing barriers to advancement for others. Poor people are blamed for their condition.

These narratives must be disrupted. People must be educated about the reality of war and of systems that produce inequality. Here are some ideas for action. Transform the teaching of history in schools. Discredit war propaganda and myths that justify violence. Demystify threats. Promote an understanding that violence is not innate; war not inevitable. Expose motivations and deceptive tactics of corrupt leaders who rationalize violence. Deconstruct nationalist ideologies and the politics of division. Combat hate speech and humanize marginalized groups. Speak out against the misuse of religion for discriminatory purposes, especially within your own faith group.

9. Leverage the power of music, art, and culture for peace

Music, art, and culture can be powerful tools to make change. They can inspire us. They can unite people. They can heal. They can change hearts and minds. They can help us see things in different ways. There is infinite potential in art and music, and in the use of culture to make positive change. And with social media, messages spread fast, and can reach far and wide.

Here are just some ideas for leveraging the power of art and culture for peace and justice. Use music, performance, poetry, comedy, or storytelling to raise awareness of issues or imagine peaceful futures. Dance or craft for a cause. Build characters and storylines that break stereotypes. Use sports to bring people in conflict together. Celebrate days of peace, human rights, and social justice. Involve cultural icons in peace actions. Join or create public prayer, meditation, or vigils for peace. Create peace imagery or re-imagine symbols. Create or use rituals to promote peace and tolerance. And don’t forget to amplify your message on social media.

10. Create (or support) structures for peace and justice

When so much of our time is spent struggling to change systemic problems, sometimes the best approach we can take is to create structures for peace (or support existing ones). This can be refreshing because it shifts the focus from the problem to the solution. It creates new potential for peace because a structure for peace by its nature is creating something new. It is not chasing the problem. It is exploring new solutions.

There are many types of groups or structures that you can create or support. Here are some ideas. Start or support a community organization, non-profit, or social enterprise working on issues important to you. Create or support mechanisms to report, prevent, or respond to violence. Support the creation (or existing work) of government departments dedicated to promoting peace and justice. Create or join platforms, forums, or networks for peace. Launch a podcast, a blog, a vlog, or other online platforms for peace, or specific to an issue that is important for you.

I hope these ideas have been helpful for you. For more ideas about practical actions you can take to build peace in the world around you, download my free handout 198 Actions for Peace here .

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Short Essay on “Shaping peace together”

What is Peace?

‘Peace’, a ubiquitous word said in places of worship every day, written in numerous books, said by every parent and teacher, but lacking in practice by many societies worldwide. What is Peace?  In my opinion, peace is a condition achieved when there is no violence, harm, humiliation despite the huge diversity of humanity and that a harmonious society is formed. Peace is not yet achieved in numerous societies due to various reasons: feeling of superiority, lack of understanding, prejudiced assumptions.

Shaping peace together: in the midst of a diverse society of cultures, religions and races, peace can still be achieved by instilling an open-minded mindset and willingness to accept differences in every individual. A willingness to understand those of different races or religions can eliminate prejudice assumptions which are two of the major causes of an inharmonious society. Willingness to interact positively with one another is essential in shaping peace in this diverse world.

Feeling of superiority should also be eradicated to ensure peace in society. Many riots and fights arouse from feelings of superiority of one side of a race or religion over another. As an example, the race riots in America recently which sparked protests all over America and the world was a result of this feeling.

In essence, shaping peace in a society is a collective effort. Everyone should play each of their own parts to create a harmonious society for all so that progress towards the betterment can continue.

Michelle Louisa

Student Member

United Nations Association of Singapore

International Peace Day 2020Shaping Peace TogetherThe International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the United… Posted by United Nations Association of Singapore on  Sunday, 20 September 2020
‘Shaping Peace Together’ by Student MemberMichelle Louisa‘Peace’, a ubiquitous word said in places of worship every… Posted by United Nations Association of Singapore on  Monday, 21 September 2020

Shaping Peace Together By Michelle Louisa

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short essay about peace

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Peacebuilding means supporting people in or at risk of conflict to prevent or end direct violence. It also means creating the conditions for sustainable peaceful coexistence and peaceful social change by addressing ‘structural violence’ – the underlying inequalities, injustice or conflict between groups of people by established institutions or processes.

Preventing or ending direct violence requires people to talk to one another, build relationships and come to agreements about how to resolve conflicts without fighting. It often also requires a shifting of power and greater social equity.

In addition, creating the conditions for ongoing positive social change and addressing structural violence requires communication and relationships between those who seek change and those who maintain the status quo, whether that is in formal institutions or through the established attitudes and behaviours in society. Societal structures, attitudes and behaviours are well established, and influencing those who have the power to change them is a long-term endeavour.

In many contexts there are groups or actors who may seek or foster violent conflict and benefit from it – for example, to weaken a neighbouring region, generate or sustain business opportunities, or reinforce political narratives and authority. Peacebuilding involves calling out and challenging such groups and actors and trying to limit their capacity to foment violent conflict or gain from it.

We do not undertake peacekeeping (providing a physical presence to prevent the resumption of violence) and tend not to get directly involved in national or international peacemaking (high-level, elite negotiations aimed at stopping immediate violence).

Our peacebuilding focusses at the community and societal levels, on strengthening relationships before, during or after violent conflict, and in creating the ongoing conditions for peaceful coexistence and positive social change.

A youth dialogue group in Bekaa, eastern Lebanon, do an assessment of a site selected for ‘placemaking’, which is about reimagining and reinventing an existing public space. © Ghina Kanawaty/Catalytic Action

International Alert’s approach to peacebuilding

This practice brief outlines what International Alert as an organisation means by peace and peacebuilding, the reasons why peacebuilding is so important and how we work to build peace.

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We believe in a world where people resolve their differences without violence. From the grassroots to policy level, we bring people together to build sustainable peace.

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  • Social Issues

Essay on War and Peace

War is a state of armed conflict between nations, states or groups, usually led by someone. War is something that happens unplanned, but inevitably. It can happen anywhere, at any time regardless of the situation it’s causing, nor the damage it does. It affects everyone and everything. It is indestructible, causing death and destruction. So why does it occur?

War and peace are in a way, consequences of actions, words, ideas or goals that a person displays. It depends on the people/opposers who determine whether they are “good” or agreeable. This leads to war or enables peace. For years, people have been in arguments that elevate and eventually lead to war. This is likely to continue happening in the future. At present there is war in many countries in the world. Most reasons for war can be narrowed down to economic, political and military factors. It is in human nature that when we want something, if nothing else works to believe in using force to obtain or fulfill our needs. And in using force, we are inclined to get through anything in our pathway to our view of success. But what if we turned to peace? On the infrequent occurrences when war resided due to peace on both or either sides, it was for the better. When comparing war and peace in any circumstance, when has the former been a better solution? And this is thinking reasonably while considering all aspects. Of course, there is a level of understanding that I don’t have, but it is not inaccurate from a general point of view.

If peace overruled war, there wouldn’t be death of beings. Damage to lives, people, animals, nature, property would be almost nonexistent. There would be less pain and heartache over meaningless fighting. Declaring war is also a display of power and/or dominance. The film “Princess Mononoke” shows the animals living in the forest who defend the forest spirit seeing the humans who oppose them as monsters. When the war ends, the nature that was previously destroyed comes back to life, showing them the beauty of the things they ruined. They show the animals as hopeless unless they fight. In this situation, war was unavoidable, with a power hungry leader opposing the forest. At times like this, war is inexorable. It just comes to show that sometimes, one has to defend oneself unless they are ready to lose everything they have. The film also gives a demonstration of a tyrannical leader (Lady Eboshi) who wants something that will destroy everything. Yet, they won’t give up. 

There can be love found in anything if you try hard enough. We are capable of showing love and maintaining peace to everyone and everything deserving. Not that you should show it to someone who is undeserving of your compassion and attempts unneededly, but everyone deserves a chance to fix their mistakes, whether it be through actions, words or thoughts that they committed it.

I believe that we should try to avoid war at all costs. In the rare position in which war is unavoidable, then take action. Otherwise, peace will always be superior to war.

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