著者

増渕 幸男

出版者

教育哲学会

雑誌

教育哲学研究 (ISSN:03873153)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2005, no.92, pp.22-39, 2005

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The twentieth century was a century of war. Despite the passionate longing for peace, and the vigorous efforts of many throughout the world community to attain it, war continues to be a part of the human condition. As political efforts to bring an end to war have had few results, humankind has placed its hopes for a world without war on education, hoping that through education the world can raise generations of peaceloving young people who will oppose war. After the Second World War, the charter of UNESCO clearly set out a road to peace and charged educators with a major role in achieving that goal. In spite of all of our good intentions, however, war continues to plague our contemporary world.<BR>As members of the human race we cannot ignore what seems to be an element of human nature that leads to continuous movements that repeat the cycle of &ldquo;want-seek-struggle-disorder&rdquo;. Should we then recognize the potential for evil as a part of human nature? Yes, I believe that evil itself is a part of the essential nature of human beings. That being the case, I would argue that : <BR>1. Education was also implicated in the crime of war, <BR>2. Education plays a role in fomenting war.<BR>Education not only imparts knowledge of the good; it also has taught methods of war. We can see this in the fact that as societies become &ldquo;more civilized&rdquo;, they also raise the making of war to new levels. We also must acknowledge the fact that religion is also involved in conflicts between nations, and that many wars take place against the background of religious disagreements. As both religion and education are concerned with the formation of the spirit, the relationship between war and religion is a complex one that education has difficulty resolving.<BR>War is a crime against humanity, and moreover necessarily causes spiritual loss. Education is also caught in a contradiction : opposing violence, and at the same time participating in war. If we cannot resolve the paradox between the two, then how can we call for accountability from education? This paper will consider these complex questions and offer some useful suggestions.