Pacificism is the general term for ethical opposition to violence or war unless force is deemed necessary.
[1] According to Martin Ceadel, pacifism and pacificism are driven by a certain political position or ideology such as liberalism, socialism or feminism.
[2] Ceadel has categorized pacificism among positions about war and peace, ordering it among the other categories:[3] Pacificism ranges between total pacifism, which usually states that killing, violence or war is unconditionally wrong in all cases, and defensivism, which accepts all defensive acts as morally just.
[4] Pacificism states that war may ever be considered only as a firm "last resort" and condemns both aggression and militarism.
[6] The distinct theory was later developed by A. J. P. Taylor in The Trouble-Makers (1957)[7] and was subsequently defined by Ceadel in his 1987 book, Thinking About Peace and War.