On the complexities of Christopher Coker and Nicholas Rengger

The twenty-first century is proving to be a bloody one. The wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and now Ukraine and Gaza have surely proved that war has not, as many had hoped, been unlearnt. Death, sacrifice, and inhumanity remain our constant companions. The study of war has therefore never been more important. In that spirit, this piece revisits the work of two renowned scholars: the late Christopher Coker and the late Nicholas Rengger. Both wrote prolifically on politics, ethics, soldiering, and war. Both were preoccupied with the judgements made for and in war. Coker has been regarded as a somewhat conservative figure, locked into an outmoded view of war as heroic, while Rengger, a political theorist, has not always appeared of direct relevance to understanding modern war. We argue that both scholars bear a rereading through which they emerge as engaged and subversive scholars that provide important insights for our time.