The Image before the Weapon: A Critical History of the Distinction between Combatant and Civilian
Language: English
Published by Cornell University Press, 2015
- Softcover
- New

Seller: Kennys Bookstore, Olney, MD, U.S.A.Kennys Bookstore
AbeBooks seller since October 9, 2009
Condition: New
£ 38.08
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
Num Pages: 272 pages, black & white illustrations. BIC Classification: HBW; JPA; JPVH1; LNDK. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 235 x 156 x 23. Weight in Grams: 428. . 2020. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.
Seller Inventory # V9781501700675
- Title
- The Image before the Weapon: A Critical History of the Distinction between Combatant and Civilian
- Author
- Helen M. Kinsella
- Publisher
- Cornell University Press
- Publication year
- 2015
- Condition
- New
- Binding
- Soft cover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 1501700677
- ISBN 13
- 9781501700675
Since at least the Middle Ages, the laws of war have distinguished between combatants and civilians under an injunction now formally known as the principle of distinction. The principle of distinction is invoked in contemporary conflicts as if there were an unmistakable and sure distinction to be made between combatant and civilian. As is so brutally evident in armed conflicts, it is precisely the distinction between civilian and combatant, upon which the protection of civilians is founded, cannot be taken as self-evident or stable. Helen M. Kinsella documents that the history of international humanitarian law itself admits the difficulty of such a distinction.
In The Image Before the Weapon, Kinsella explores the evolution of the concept of the civilian and how it has been applied in warfare. A series of discourses―including gender, innocence, and civilization― have shaped the legal, military, and historical understandings of the civilian and she documents how these discourses converge at particular junctures to demarcate the difference between civilian and combatant. Engaging with works on the law of war from the earliest thinkers in the Western tradition, including St. Thomas Aquinas and Christine de Pisan, to contemporary figures such as James Turner Johnson and Michael Walzer, Kinsella identifies the foundational ambiguities and inconsistencies in the principle of distinction, as well as the significant role played by Christian concepts of mercy and charity.
She then turns to the definition and treatment of civilians in specific armed conflicts: the American Civil War and the U.S.-Indian Wars of the nineteenth century, and the civil wars of Guatemala and El Salvador in the 1980s. Finally, she analyzes the two modern treaties most influential for the principle of distinction: the 1949 IV Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Times of War and the 1977 Protocols Additional to the 1949 Conventions, which for the first time formally defined the civilian within international law. She shows how the experiences of the two world wars, but particularly World War II, and the Algerian war of independence affected these subsequent codifications of the laws of war.
As recognition grows that compliance with the principle of distinction to limit violence against civilians depends on a firmer grasp of its legal, political, and historical evolution, The Image before the Weapon is a timely intervention in debates about how best to protect civilian populations.
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
Helen M. Kinsella is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Kennys Bookstore
Olney, MD, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since October 9, 2009
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 14 to 20 business days | 13 to 14 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 7.84 | £ 15.68 |
Payment methods
Store description
We carry a comprehensive range of out of print and rare books.
Specialty
Revolution, War, Peace, Irish StudiesSeller's business information
Kennys Bookshop and Art Galleries (Holdings) Limited
Liosbán Retail Park, Tuam Road
Galway, Ireland H91 N5P8
Terms of sale
We guarantee the condition of every book as it's described on the Abebooks websites.
If you're dissatisfied with your purchase (Incorrect Book/Not as Described/Damaged) or if the order hasn't arrived, you're eligible for a refund within 30 days of the estimated delivery date.
For any queries please use the contact seller link or send an email to books@kennys.ie
Conor Kenny
Right of withdrawal
If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
The withdrawal period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the last good or the last lot or piece.
To exercise the right of withdrawal, electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". We will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a withdrawal on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.
To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.
Effects of withdrawal
If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.
We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to Kennys Bookstore, Olney, Maryland, U.S.A., without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal does not apply to:
- The delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
- The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not withdraw once delivery had started.
Shipping terms
All books securely packaged. Some books ship from Ireland.