possessions are bound up with prestige, honor, and position
in the world, that men and nations fight about them.

b) _War, instincts, and ideals._--War is the outstanding and the
typical example of conflict. In war, where hostility prevails over
every interest of sentiment or utility which would otherwise unite the
contending parties or groups, the motives and the role of conflict in
social life present themselves in their clearest outline. There is,
moreover, a practical reason for fixing upon war as an illustration of
conflict. The tremendous interest in all times manifested in war, the
amazing energies and resources released in peoples organized for
military aggression or defense, the colossal losses and sacrifices
endured for the glory, the honor, or the security of the fatherland have
made wars memorable. Of no other of the larger aspects of collective
life have we such adequate records.

The problem of the relation of war to human instincts, on the one hand,
and to human ideals, on the other, is the issue about which most recent
observation and discussion has centered. It seems idle to assert that
hostility has no roots in man's original nature. The concrete materials
given in this chapter show beyond question how readily the wishes and
the instincts of the person may take the form of the fighting pattern.
On the other hand, the notion that tradition, culture, and collective
representations have no part in determining the attitudes of nations
toward war seems equally untenable. The significant sociological inquiry
is to determine just in what ways a conjunction of the tendencies in
original nature, the forces of tradition and culture, and the exigencies
of the situation determine the organization of the fighting pattern. We
have historical examples of warlike peoples becoming peaceful and of
pacific nations militaristic. An understanding of the mechanism of the
process is a first condition to any exercise of control.

c) _Rivalry, cultural conflicts, and social organization._--Rivalry is
a sublimated form of conflict where the struggle of individuals is
subordinated to the welfare of the group. In the rivalry of groups,
likewise, conflict or competition is subordinated to the interests of an
inclusive group. Rivalry may then be defined as conflict controlled by
the group in its interest. A survey of the phenomena of rivalry brings
out its role as an organizing force in group life.

In the study of conflict gro