Does the West Still Need Warriors?’ This Thesis Is Not Only About Warriors As Such
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The London School of Economics and Political Science DOES THE WEST STILL NEED WARRIORS? Rune Henriksen Thesis submitted to the Department of International Relations London School of Economics and Political Science for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy London, August 2008 l UMI Number: U61548B All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U615483 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 f ^073 British Library of Political and Economic Science ABSTRACT Situated within strategic aspects of International Relations, this thesis asks whether the West still needs warriors. The West has always had and needed warriors, and six warrior ideal types are analysed. Three of these are premodern and three are modern. Warriors are defined as soldiers with a personal and existential commitment to master and experience warfare, who are willing and able to kill and sacrifice their life in combat. It is argued warriors are principally individual types, and whereas there are many soldiers, few of these are warriors. The thesis presents a social theory of who and what the West is, analysing how this is translated into security paradigms that conceive for example whether security ought to be pursued for only the West, or whether it ought to be pursued for all of mankind. A further context issue is the relationship between war and combat. The character of war is changing and becoming ever more instrumental. Combat, meanwhile, is existential and unchanging, consisting of the same basic features and social structure it did in Homeric times. To ask whether the West needs warriors is thus to ask both an instrumental and an existential question. The existential features have to do with whom the West conceives themselves as; the instrumental features about what the West needs. Warriors are both a type of human being embodying qualities like manliness and courage, and instruments towards the attainment of security for Western states. To an extent, social developments have eroded the esteem in which warriors are held, because society is sceptical of the deliberate use of force. Yet at the same time, the security agendas conceived by the West are more expansive than ever, which leads to a greater need for warriors. 2 DECLARATION I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of the author. I warrant that this authorization does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. Thesis word count: 101,834 3 CONTENTS Abstract Declaration Acknowledgements Abbreviations Chapter 1: Introduction General introduction Definition o f soldier Existing definitions o f warrior Warrior definition Methodology and plan o f thesis Chapter 2: Who is the West, and what does the West want? Introduction A social theory of Western modernity Social imaginaries Security paradigms Conclusion Chapter 3: War is instrumental Introduction War without existential meaning Instrumental war I: War as instrument Instrumental war II: War by technological instruments — the American way o f warfare Conclusion Chapter 4: Combat is existential Introduction The trinitarian nature o f combat Conclusion Chapter 5: A history of pre-modem warriors 115 Introduction Homer and the archetypical warrior Plato invents the soldier A romantic ideal in a rough reality: the chivalric knight Conclusion Chapter 6: A history of modern warriors 155 Introduction Ernst Jiinger and the stormtroop ideal type Citizen warrior ideal type The special forces warrior ideal type Conclusion Chapter 7: Does the West still need warriors 203 Introduction The existential role o f warriors in society The instrumental role o f warriors at the macro level; warriors in security paradigms Contemporary mini-case; warriors in counter-terrorism Conclusion Bibliography 250 Illustrations: Figure 1: Plan of thesis 36 Table 1: Western vectors of modernity 39 Table 2: Western social imaginaries 58 Figure 2: Combat, war and society 112 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I gratefully acknowledge the generous financial assistance from the Department of International Relations; the Financial Support Office of the LSE; the Goodenough College; and the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies (IFS). Universities UK, through granting me the Overseas Research Student (ORS) award, made my studies possible in the first place, for which I am very appreciative. I owe Sophia H. thanks as well, for helping me find consulting work. Special thanks go to the generosity and support of my parents, without which I could not have seen this thesis through. I owe thanks to those who have closely and critically read, and made suggestions about how to improve, my work: Anthony V., who took the time to read my entire thesis promptly, and parts earlier; and Anna K. F., who has helped me immensely both with substantial comments along the way and a very thorough proofreading of the entire thesis at a critical time. I would also like to thank the members of my two panels at the Department of International Relations, whose constructive advice helped consolidate some important theoretical aspects: Professor Kimberly Hutchings, Dr Mark Duckenfield, Professor Christopher Hughes, Dr Andrew Walter and Mark Hoffman. Additionally, a number of people have kindly yet ruthlessly read parts of my thesis and given me helpful comments; they include Matthew A., Malfrid B.-H., Jorn A. H., Caroline H., Jeff M., Daniel R. M., Colin J. S., and Serena S. I also want to thank my best friends in London who have made these years such a great time. Adriana, Jephta and Anthony made my first year fun and inspiring. Colin has entertained me for two years in the British Library and has been a generous and entertaining spirit in London as well as on the conference trail. Matt has kept me fit, shown me London by bike, and has pushed me to work hard. Carlo and Serena have been fun to be around, not least because of their dark sides. Daniel has given me provocative discussions, and has always been helpful, friendly and generous. This is also true about Caroline, a kindred spirit whom I was fortunate to meet last year. I am very grateful too to my brothers Espen and Jorn, for their resolute support, encouragement and friendship throughout this time. Special thanks goes to Anna for making these years in London unforgettable; for your presence, love, generosity and unwavering support to me in this project, and the next ones. 6 My interest in war and warriors goes back a long way, but it would never have escalated into full time attention were it not for Professor Christopher Coker and his particular approach to strategic studies. Incomparably inspiring and intellectually provocative, his lectures as well as his books continue to stimulate further study by being original, ruthlessly realistic yet deeply humanist. As a supervisor, Christopher has been outstanding: helpful in suggesting innumerable angles on a given problem; flexible on schedules, but quick to give feedback; always providing ways to stimulate arguments and ideas further, but happy to move beyond the work and be a friend. 7 ABBREVIATIONS AK-47 Soviet and Chinese produced automatic assault rifle BUDS Basic underwater demolitions (training phase, United States naval special warfare CENTCOM Central Command, one of US military regional commands Cl Counterinsurgency role (here: for Special Forces) CIA Central Intelligence Agency, United States C-rations Individual pre-cooked or prepared ration CT Counterterrorism role (here: for Special Forces) F-4 Phantom Two seat, two engine, supersonic fighter bomber, Vietnam era FATA Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Pakistan GSG9 Grenzschutzgruppe9, German federal counterterrorism police SF United States Army Special Forces, informally: Green Berets ISA Intelligence Support Activity, US covert special forces intelligence ISAF International Security Assistance Force, Afghanistan, NATO led and UN administered mission M-16 American produced automatic assault rifle introduced in Vietnam MACV/SOG Military Assistance Command Vietnam / Studies and Observation Group, elite inter-service special operations unit during Vietnam War MI6/SIS British Secret Intelligence Service NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Western collective defence alliance since 1949 NCO Non-commissioned officer, enlisted, ranks including corporals and sergeants NGO Non-governmental organization NKVD People’s commissariat for internal affairs, Soviet Union secret police 8 OED Oxford English Dictionary PMC Private Military Company POW Prisoner of War SAS Special Air Service, British Army special operations forces PR Public Relations PTSD Post Traumatic Stress Disorder RMA Revolution in Military Affairs SACEUR Supreme Allied Commander Europe SEAL Sea, Air, Land, United States naval special forces SFC Sergeant First Class VC Vietcong SOF Special Operations Forces TRADOC United States Army Training and Doctrine Command UNDP United Nations Development Programme USMC United States Marine Corps USSSOCOM United States Special Operations Command WMD Weapons of Mass Destruction 9 C hapter 1: Introduction General introduction Thesis question This thesis is situated within International Relations, focusing on its strategic aspects.