Defending the Great Community: Royce’s Concept of Humanitarian Intervention

In this essay, I argue against the skepticism, which has grown after the U.S. invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, which says humanitarian intervention is unjustified. By drawing on Josiah Royce’s work urging U.S. involvement in the first World War, I maintain that such action, including the use of military force, can be conceived of as a tool for the forging of a global community firmly committed to peace, cooperation, and human rights.