pacifiste

Pacifiste is the French term for a person who opposes war and advocates the use of peaceful, nonviolent means to resolve conflicts. A pacifiste typically supports diplomacy, disarmament, international law, and humanitarian action as substitutes for armed force. While some use the term to describe broad antiwar sentiment, others distinguish between absolute or principled pacifism and more pragmatic forms that oppose most wars but accept defensive or limited force under specific circumstances.

Etymology and scope: the concept is rooted in the Latin pax, peace, and has appeared in many languages with related terms such as pacifism and pacifist. In religious and secular contexts, pacifism often emerges from commitments to nonviolence, human rights, and social justice. Historical currents range from religiously inspired peace movements to contemporary international advocacy for conflict prevention and disarmament.

Practices and distinctions: pacifisme commonly encompasses nonviolent resistance, civil disobedience, negotiation, mediation, and international diplomacy. Conscientious objection refers to individuals who refuse military service on moral or religious grounds. Some pacifists distinguish absolute pacifism, opposing all war under any condition, from conditional or pragmatic forms that oppose most war but accept defense or humanitarian interventions in rare cases.

Historical influences and figures: the philosophy has deep roots in Christian pacifism (Quakers, Mennonites), Jainism and Buddhism’s emphasis on nonviolence, and later thinkers such as Leo Tolstoy and Mahatma Gandhi, whose ideas shaped nonviolent resistance. In modern discourse, leaders and scholars such as Bertrand Russell and Martin Luther King Jr. have linked pacifism to disarmament, human rights, and peaceful social change, though debates about its practicality and risks continue.

See also: pacifism, nonviolence, conscientious objection, just war theory, peace movements.