In this blog post, we will look at how wars reveal the desires of humanity and how they have contributed to the development of civilization and technology from various angles.
The two major wars that have caused devastating damage around the world are World War I and World War II. World War I was a war that took place mainly in Europe from July 28, 1914 to November 11, 1918. It was a huge conflict between the Allied Powers of the United Kingdom, France, and Russia and the Central Powers of Germany and Austria. The war killed more than 9 million soldiers, making it one of the deadliest wars in history.
World War II, which lasted from September 1, 1939 to September 2, 1945, was the war that caused the most casualties and property damage in human history, and it began with Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland. The war ended when the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. This war resulted in approximately 25 million casualties and 25 million civilian casualties.
Human history can be said to be the history of war. Wars of all sizes have been fought throughout world history, and they continue to be fought today. Since most wars have had devastating consequences, many people tend to focus on the negative aspects of war. However, I argue that war has greatly contributed to the development of humanity, and furthermore, that the competitive spirit of humans that is manifested through war has driven the development of humanity. Of course, this argument is not intended to encourage war. Looking back on the past, war has had a positive impact on the development of humanity and civilization, and understanding this can help us prepare for the future.
The dictionary definition of war is “an act or state of using military force and other means to compel the will of an adversary or adversaries between two or more opposing nations or equivalent groups.” As this definition shows, there can be various purposes and forms of war in addition to war involving the use of physical military force.
In the past, before the territories of nations were established, the main purpose of war was to pursue national interests through territorial expansion. In the modern era, when capitalism has been established, wars have also occurred to gain profits through securing resources or forming a hierarchical relationship between countries. There have also been cases where wars have been used to achieve mental unity among the members of a country. Until the present day, most wars have only changed the tools and technologies used, but the basic aspect of physical conflict using military force has remained the same. However, in the modern era, various forms of war have emerged in addition to wars that use physical force. For example, the Cold War, which was a confrontation between two alliances due to ideological differences between the United States and the Soviet Union, is also a form of war. In addition, with the advancement of technology, information is being stored in virtual space, and a war over information in cyberspace, or cyberwar, is also occurring.
I would like to describe the confrontation between two groups with specific goals and forms as a war. Since modern technology is too advanced and dangerous to wage a physical war, war has been banned by international law since World War II. The war prohibited here refers to the use of physical violence, so various forms of war are still possible and are actually occurring. The actions of terrorist groups such as IS also fall under the category of war because they are confrontations between groups that are equivalent to countries.
It cannot be denied that war has caused great and small damage to humanity. Nevertheless, I argue that war has had a positive impact on the development of human civilization. Looking back at the past, there are many examples of war having a positive impact on modern civilization. It is no exaggeration to say that modern civilization and science and technology originated from war.
Modern warfare, represented by World War I and World War II, was accompanied by rapid advances in science and technology. New war technologies developed during this period became the backbone of modern civilization after the war. For example, the development of radar was driven by the growing importance of identifying friend from foe in war. Radar, a war technology, has been applied to technologies using microwaves and is widely used in modern life, such as in microwave ovens. The importance of supply in war also led to the development of food processing and preservation technologies. This led to the growth of the processed food industry, the widespread distribution of processed foods such as spam, and the spread of fast food such as hamburgers around the world. The importance of information transmission and processing in war also increased, and the information processing technology developed during wartime led to the development of a network of underground contacts and the Internet. Computer technology has advanced to process information quickly, and information encryption and decryption technology has led to internet security and search technology. In the modern era of established capitalism, technological development has led to the development of civilization, and there is no denying that world wars have contributed to the development of human civilization.
Past wars have also contributed a lot to the development of humanity. The Crusades were a series of battles that took place in medieval Europe from the 11th to the 13th century. As European Christian societies attempted to reclaim Jerusalem from the Muslims, they introduced new items such as the compass and gunpowder from the Islamic world, which led to the development of European civilization. The introduction of gunpowder made it possible to produce cannons and firearms, which led to the fall of the feudal society centered on knights. If we go back even further in time, we find the Battle of Issus, which was fought by Alexander the Great. Through this battle, Alexander the Great conquered Persia and western India, and in the Gandhara region of India, Gandhara art was born, a fusion of Greek and Indian cultures. As such, the course and outcome of war has taught humanity a lesson and advanced civilization.
Of course, there are cases where culture or technology has regressed due to war. For example, the Inca civilization near Peru was destroyed in a two-year war with Spain starting in 1531, and its social system collapsed. This can be seen as a regression of the Inca civilization due to war. However, from the perspective of all mankind, this war can be thought of as a process in which the relatively slow-developing Inca civilization was eliminated and replaced by Western civilization. This is similar to how Homo sapiens drove out Neanderthals. In the end, the Inca civilization was replaced by a better civilization through war, which was a development on the level of the entire human race.
War is an example of the extreme expression of human desire. Human desire for power and greed for more power has led to competition between individuals and groups, and when conflicts between groups intensify, they result in conflicts such as war. Humans have developed civilization through competition, and war is part of that process.
War is not necessarily necessary to satisfy human competition or desire. War is an extreme method for this purpose, but it is not essential. However, war can accelerate the development of civilization by maximizing competition between two groups. This is because technology development, which is usually slow, is more efficiently carried out during war with the intensive input of large-scale resources. It is no coincidence that various technologies are developed during the course of war. Since technology is subsequently commercialized and used by many people, leading to the development of civilization, technologies developed during war ultimately become the driving force for the development of humanity.
War is an extreme example of human desire and has contributed greatly to the development of civilization. This applies not only to traditional wars involving physical conflict, but also to various forms of modern warfare. For example, trade wars for economic gain and information wars in cyberspace are emerging as new forms that go beyond the concept of traditional warfare.
In modern society, the nature of war has changed, and various forms of conflict, such as asymmetric warfare, terrorism, and information warfare, are occurring. These conflicts have complex effects on society, economy, and politics beyond simple military clashes. They promote the efficient distribution of resources and technological development, and sometimes serve as an opportunity to reorganize the international order.
Ultimately, war is an inevitable phenomenon in the process of mankind pursuing its own interests, and in this process, mankind forms new technologies, cultures, and social structures. Although the negative aspects of war are prominent, mankind has always evolved in the process, and this development has often taken place in the context of war. Therefore, it may be an incomplete view to simply view war negatively, and it is important to look at the lessons and developments that have been gained from it.
In conclusion, war reflects the complex desires of humanity, and the various forms of conflict that arise from it act as an important factor that can contribute to the development of civilization. Based on these historical facts, humanity should move toward preventing future conflicts and promoting peaceful development.
