書評：From Militarism to Civilian State-- Reviewing The Monopoly of Violence: Why Europeans Hate Going to War

This book mainly discusses how history transformed European countries from war-oriented and military powers into“civilian states”, states that retained the capacity to make war with one another but lost all interest in doing so. The result was an eclipse of violence in both meanings of the word: violence declined in importance and it was concealed from view by something else-- that is, by the state’s need to encourage economic growth, provide social welfare, and guarantee personal security for its citizens (Sheehan, 2008, p. 20). The core argument of this book is that the obsolescence of war is particularly relevant to Europe due to its distinctive 20th-century history. Moreover, European integration in economic, political, and military fields after the Second World War (WWII) made war less likely to erupt.