POLI 342 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Diplomatic History, Human Nature, Classical Liberalism
11 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
The beginnings of IR theory
• Idealism
o Woodrow Wilson
• Studied institutions
o People who studied international law began to think of IR from a theoretical perspective
o Thinking about the normative vision aspect of theories
o Understand why things are occurring so you can propose policies
o Takes off in WW1
• Realism
o Diplomatic history
o Interested in description
o Saw WW1 differently
o It's typical in how great powers resolve fights
Why you are theorizing?
Origins of realism
• One of the oldest IR theories
o Thucydides
o Emphasis on power and conflict among states
o Athens
o Gives examples of realism
• Classical development of realism comes in 1920s
o Rejection of idealists
• Idealists concentrate on international laws and the league of nations
o Leaders in Europe are concerned about the possibility of another war
o E.H Carr writes the "Twenty Years' Crisis in 1939
• Criticizing idealist policies
▪ How do you know to give policy prescriptions if you are unable to predict the
future?
▪ Need better descriptions to have predictions
• Complies realist ideas
• Also criticizes realists
▪ Too much description
▪ Need to offer a better future and policies
• Even with the normative goal (peace), you should question that
• Do’t assue the status uo is good
• There are people out there that will be willing t go to war because they values
changes
• Develops classical realist perspective
• Evolution of realism
o Based on assumptions
o Aims to describe the "natural order"
o Classical realism
• Draws on human nature
• Opposite of idealist
• Assume people are selfish and want control
• Expect conflict
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Document Summary
It"s typical in how great powers resolve fights. Origins of realism: one of the oldest ir theories, thucydides, emphasis on power and conflict among states, athens, gives examples of realism, classical development of realism comes in 1920s, rejection of idealists. Focusing on state sovereignty: thinker: waltz, human nature is the wrong starting point, we want to understand why we"re going from peace to war, why is the behavior varying. It is about the situation actors find themselves in that prompts good or bad behavior: war is a product of the situation actors find themselves in. In the 1950s, it is a given that the us and su were competitors because they were the most powerful. Core assumptions of structural realism: the international system is anarchic, states are sovereignty actors, highest political authority, no governing body of the international system. States are the primary actors in international relations: not the only actors, other actors must have the permission of the state.
