The Phenomenon of War in the Theory of Conflict by Ludwik Gumplowicz

Abstract

Ludwik Gumplowicz (1938–1909) was one of the most outstanding Polish scientists at the turn of the 19^th and 20^th centuries, who consistently used the sociological perspective to describe the state and social phenomena. From the point of view of the discipline of political and legal doctrines, the scientific system created by him is extremely important because, as one of the first thinkers, he led the existence of a category of state from conflict and conquest (the so-called exogenous genesis of the state), consistently justified by the laws of social evolutionism. The article was devoted to proving the thesis that fatalism, which characterizes the scientific concepts of Gumplowicz, leads to the conclusion that it is impossible for people to stop waging war. In order to conduct a correct research analysis, the basic assumptions of Gumplowicz’s theory of conflict were presented first, later a simplified model of social evolution was presented and ultimately focus on the phenomenon of war described by him. Reconstructing and interpreting the concepts examined, the methodology of political and legal doctrines was used, using classical categories of the subject such as individual, society, state, power, law, and property.