Defensive Killing: An Essay on War and Self-Defence - Softcover

Defensive Killing is a scintillating exemplar of contemporary moral philosophy. Though its conclusions are at times bracing, Frowe's subtlety and intellectual honesty are unmatched ... It is a pathbreaking contribution not only to the ethics of war, but to deontological moral theory. (Seth Lazar, Australian National University)

a sophisticated and meticulously argued wake-up call ... Frowe's book clearly deserves a privileged place in the pantheon of works on the morality of war ... It is required reading for anyone interested in contemporary theories of defensive violence and the morality of war. (Australasian Journal of Philosophy)

Frowe's intricately argued, insightful, and challenging book. I have benefited enormously from thinking as carefully as I am able about the positions she defends and the arguments she gives for them. I am confident that the same will be true of others who read this splendid book. (Jeff McMahan, Ethics)

Most people believe that it is sometimes morally permissible for a person to use force to defend herself or others against harm. In Defensive Killing, Helen Frowe offers a detailed exploration of when and why the use of such force is permissible. She begins by considering the use of force between individuals, investigating both the circumstances under which an attacker forfeits her right not to be harmed, and the distinct question of when it is all-things-considered permissible to use force against an attacker. Frowe then extends this enquiry to war, defending the view that we should judge the ethics of killing in war by the moral rules that govern killing between individuals. She argues that this requires us to significantly revise our understanding of the moral status of non-combatants in war. Non-combatants who intentionally contribute to an unjust war forfeit their rights not to be harmed, such that they are morally liable to attack by combatants fighting a just war.