Abstract

The literature on peaceful societies has increased significantly over the past two decades, reflecting ethnographic research of current peaceful cultures and archaeological discoveries of artistic, harmonious prehistoric societies. Moreover, the recent findings intimate a little explored association between non-gender-differentiating conceptions of personhood, equitable gender status, and peaceful community. Although Western philosophical and political theories generally have been founded upon models of human nature assuming violence as an inescapable aspect of social relations, existentialist philosophy allows for consideration of conditions conducive to peaceful community, as well as theoretical connections between peaceful relations and gender ideology. An existentialist analysis of non-essential gender construction, supported by anthropological findings concerning peaceful societies, suggests that more comprehensive research of the interplay between gender ideology and peace would be beneficial in the context of addressing situations of urgent social importance.