PSCI 2601 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Power Politics, Statism, Human Nature
21 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Ir theory: some kind of simplifying device that allows us to decide which facts matter and are important and which do not. The timeless wisdom of realism: an ancient tradition of thought -- raison d"etat, emphasizes the enduring propensity for conflict, a struggle for power among self-interested actors, world war two and the first great debate, realism and its critics. A timeless wisdom: reason of state to survive, dual moral standard, power defined in terms of capabilities, balance of power politics. Lectures: anarchy, not human nature, the reason for conflict and the endless quest for power, no agency above the individual states with authority to make laws and settle disputes. Because of anarchy: states fear each other and worry about survival, defensive, waltzian, realism security the key concern, offensive realism (mearsheimer) power the key concern, states can never have enough.
