scholarly journals “Verum Est Ipsum Factum” – True is What Has Been Made as Such

2010 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-43
Author(s):  
Torsti Sirén
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
World Order ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
Cultural Perspective ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Eu Integration ◽  
Nato Enlargement ◽  
Interactionist Perspective ◽  
Classical Realism

Abstract In traditional International Relations theory (IR), states have been approached from empiricist perspective by using methods and terminologies that consider states as homogeneous ‘speaking billiard balls’, which compete for power, prestige and so forth with each other. This article does not argue that traditional paradigms of IR (such as Classical Realism or Neorealism) would not count any more, vice versa, but what this article argues is that for being able to understand more deeply such topical social phenomena as terrorism, strategic communities, spread of nuclear weapons, nuclear policies, world order, NATO-enlargement, EU-integration, threat scenarios, enemy images an so forth, one has to adopt a more holistic, Constructivist social theoretical, approach than traditional IR offers. In this context Constructivism necessitates at least three things. Firstly, one has to explicitly clear out his/her ontological and epistemological points of departure for being able to operate with Constructivist social theory. In some occasions it may e.g. be necessary to deal with God’s and religions’ ontological and epistemological statuses as signifiers of interests, or as ‘root causes’ of behaviour of many social groups, communities and nations. Secondly, the state should be considered as a ‘decentred subject’ consisting of individuals, many sub-groups, organizational structure, institutions and especially identity structure, which has been purposefully constructed throughout the history (the endogenous perspective), and which is under constant reconstruction through domestic and international discursive interactions (the interactionist perspective). Thirdly, one should take into account that human communities and societies tend to habituate themselves into certain beliefs, values and modes of action that change very slowly over the course of history (the cultural perspective), despite increasing interactions.

International Relations Theory and the New World Order

1996 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert B. Woyach ◽  
Tong Whan Park ◽  
Wil Hout ◽  
Arie Kacowicz ◽  
William Reno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
New World ◽  
World Order ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
New World Order

Hans Kelsen's Political Realism

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Schuett
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
World Order ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Political Realism ◽  
Moral Choice ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
Natural Laws ◽  
Illiberal Democracy ◽  
Hans Kelsen ◽  
Classical Realism

What does it mean to be a foreign-policy realist? Why is it important to get Hans Kelsen right? How can open society ideals be reconciled with the tragedies of world politics? It is widely acknowledged that the rules-based international order is under assault by visions of illiberal democracy at home and powerful autocracies abroad. The Schmittians old and new are making a comeback, and neorealists in particular continue to pit realism against liberalism: where there is only power or nothing, all else is scorned as naïve, including Kelsen. The book challenges the neorealist myth of power politics and conventional views of the Austrian-American jurist in international relations theory. Revisiting Kelsen’s life and thought through the prism of classical realism, the supposed Kantian idealist is presented as a calm yet bold, progressive political realist who has continued analytical and normative relevance in the study of politics and world order. The case is made that a synthesis of political realism and progressive policies is possible. No matter what the Schmittians say or do, what is in a liberal democracy’s so-called national interest is not a function of causality, necessity, or any other natural laws of impersonal forces or anarchical structures. Rather, what is willed, or not willed, on any given day in politics and international relations is the product of political imputation, moral choice, and individual and collective human agency.

scholarly journals In search of Karl Polanyi’s International Relations theory

2015 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 401-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gareth Dale
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
European Integration ◽  
International Politics ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
World Order ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
International Order ◽  
New Regionalism ◽  
Karl Polanyi

AbstractKarl Polanyi is principally known as an economic historian and a theorist of international political economy. His theses are commonly encountered in debates concerning globalisation, regionalism, regulation and deregulation, and neoliberalism. But the standard depiction of his ideas is based upon a highly restricted corpus of his work: essentially, his published writings, in English, from the 1940s and 1950s. Drawing upon a broader range of Polanyi’s work in Hungarian, German, and English, this article examines his less well-known analyses of international politics and world order. It sketches the main lineaments of Polanyi’s international thought from the 1910s until the mid-1940s, charting his evolution from Wilsonian liberal, via debates within British pacifism, towards a position close to E. H. Carr’s realism. It reconstructs the dialectic of universalism and regionalism in Polanyi’s prospectus for postwar international order, with a focus upon his theory of ‘tame empires’ and its extension by neo-Polanyian theorists of the ‘new regionalism’ and European integration. It explores the tensions and contradictions in Polanyi’s analysis, and, finally, it hypothesises that the failure of his postwar predictions provides a clue as to why his research on international relations dried up in the 1950s.

International Relations Theory and World Order

2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 20-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayati Srivastava ◽  
Ananya Sharma
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
World Order ◽  
International Relations Theory

scholarly journals Interlocuting classical realism and critical theory: Negotiating ‘divides’ in international relations theory

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hartmut Behr ◽  
Michael C Williams
Keyword(s):  
Critical Theory ◽  
International Relations ◽  
International Politics ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
Critical Theories ◽  
History Of ◽  
Common Problems ◽  
Classical Realism

The history of the discipline of International Relations is usually narrated as a succession of theories that would pursue different ontologies and epistemologies and focus on different problems. This narrative provides some structure to a multifaceted field and its diverse discussions. However, it is also highly problematic as it ignores common problems, intersections and mutual inspirations and overemphasizes divides over eventual commonalities. Rather than such overemphasis, we suggest instead negotiating between ‘IR theories’ and elaborating their shared foci and philosophies of science in order to provide new perspectives on and approaches to international politics. We here negotiate between the two theoretical movements of classical realism and critical theories that are typically treated as opposites, yet which nonetheless are characterized by shared concerns about political and social crises, modernity and humanity.

scholarly journals Theorising Chinese International Relations and the Rise of China

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (54) ◽  
pp. 23-32
Author(s):  
Sudeep Kumar Mr.
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Latin American ◽  
World Order ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
Methodological Framework ◽  
Rise Of China ◽  
Societal Interactions ◽  
The Rise Of China ◽  
Latin American Countries

This paper critically analyses the case study of Chinese international relations theory through the lens of a non-Western International relations theoretical framework.There should be an attempt to democratise the existing international relations discipline because societal interactions among the countries across the globe cannot be judged by the yardstick of Western experiences. Non-Western international relations theories can be also generated under the post-positivist methodological framework, as it is equally important to include the localised voices and experiences of Asian, African and Latin American countries by reactivating their local historical traditions and ancient philosophies, sociological perspective and ontological, epistemological and axiological dimension of international relations theories 3. Key words: International Relations Theory - Tribute System – Confucian Model of Governance – World Order

Teaching International Relations Theory

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig Douglas Albert
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
International Studies ◽  
World Systems ◽  
Ir Theory ◽  
General Introduction ◽  
World Systems Theory ◽  
Is Theory ◽  
Classical Realism

International relations (IR) theory is favorably described in almost every syllabus since 1930. The most important questions asked were: “What is theory?” and “Is there a reason for IR theory?” The most widely used texts all focus on the first question and suggest, among others, that IR theory is “a way of making the world or some part of it more intelligible or better understood.” We can gauge where the teaching of IR theory is today by analyzing a sample of syllabi from IR scholars serving on the Advisory Board of the International Studies Association’s (ISA) Compendium Project. These syllabi reveal some trends. Within the eight undergraduate syllabi, for example, a general introduction to IR theory is taught in four separate classes. Among the theories discussed in different classes are realism, classical realism, neo-realism, Marxism and neo-Marxism, world-systems theory, imperialism, constructivism, and international political economy. Novel methods for teaching IR theory include the use of films, active learning, and experiential learning. The diversity of treatments of IR theory implied by the ISA syllabi provides evidence that, with the exception of the proliferation of perspectives, relatively little has changed since the debates of the late 1930s. The discipline lacks much semblance of unity regarding whether, and how, to offer IR theory to students. Nevertheless, there have been improvements that are likely to continue in terms of the ways in which theories may be presented.

scholarly journals Exeunt Omnes? Survival, Pessimism and Time in the Work of John H. Herz

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 283-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Stevens
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
International Politics ◽  
International Relations Theory ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Security Dilemma ◽  
Late Modernity ◽  
Human Survival ◽  
Classical Realism ◽  
Intellectual Legacy

John H. Herz (1908-2005) is better known for his theorisation of the security dilemma than for his conviction that human survival is threatened by the conditions of late modernity. This article explores extinction and survival in his work to interrogate his persistent characterisation as an incorrigible pessimist. In his preoccupation with extinction, Herz would seem a first-rank pessimist, but his intellectual commitments belie this easy categorisation. Specifically, his appeals to interdisciplinary ‘survival research’ suggest a qualified pessimism that does not foreclose on the potential of humankind to overcome structural, political and normative obstacles. This is consistent with current understandings of pessimism within the broader realist tradition. Herz expressed an ‘open’ and ‘linear’ temporality that challenges cyclical and linear-progressive temporalities inherent to realism and liberalism, respectively. Herz articulates, therefore, a ‘productive pessimism’ that charts a different path for pessimist thought beyond its pejorative connotations. This article contributes to the literature on classical realism, to a growing interest in Herz’s intellectual legacy, and to the developing appreciation of time and temporality in International Relations theory and practice. It also provides a foundation for rethinking our assumptions about pessimism and international politics.

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