Discourses of War and Peace examines specific contexts around the globe in which discourse operates in the service of war and to build alternative visions of peace. Contributors, who come from backgrounds in linguistics, anthropology, rhetoric, and communication studies, draw from discourse analytic and/or ethnographic methods to examine the discourse used by politicians and social actors in societies that include the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Morocco, Ireland, the Palestinian territories, and Japan. The book is divided into four sections that foreground the political effects of discourse on issues of war and peace, including the way discourse is harnessed to justify war (part I), negotiate military deployment (part II), respond to armed conflict (part III), and promote peace (part IV).

The book has a strong enthnographic component; in addition to chapters that employ critical discourse analysis and narrative analysis, several chapters incorporate ethnographic analysis into the examination of language use. The book as a whole therefore provides complementary perspectives on discourses of war and peace.