Gramsci, Historical Materialism and International Relations

Relates the writings of Antonio Gramsci and others to the contemporary debates in international relations.

Stephen Gill (Edited by)

9780521435239, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 26 February 1993

336 pages
23.4 x 15.1 x 2.8 cm, 0.555 kg

' … overall very interesting and provocative, (this collection of essays) is an attempt to both vindicate the 'Gramscian' orientation as a fruitful approach to the study of international relations and to normalize it within the mainstream of research … quite a number of the chapters present fresh, important arguments and radical perspectives regarding current problems of the emerging dispensation in world politics.' International Affairs

The essays collected here relate the writings of Antonio Gramsci and others to the contemporary reconstruction of historical materialist theories of international relations. The contributors analyse the contradiction between globalising and territorially-based social and political forces in the context of past, present and future world orders, and view the emerging world order as undergoing a structural transformation, a 'triple crisis' involving economic, political and 'socio-cultural' change. The prevailing trend of the 1980s and early 1990s toward the marketisation and commodification of social relations leads the contributors to argue that socialism needs to be redefined away from the totalising visions associated with Marxism-Leninism, towards the idea of the self-defence of society and social choice to counter the disintegrating and atomising effects of globalising and unplanned market forces.

Preface Stephen Gill
Part I. Philosophical and Theoretical Reflections: 1. Epistemology, ontology and the 'Italian School' Stephen Gill
2. Gramsci, hegemony and international relations: an essay in method Robert Cox
3. Alienation, capitalism and the inter-state system: toward a Marxian/Gramscian critique Mark Rupert
4. Global hegemony and the structural power of capital Stephen Gill and David Law
Part II. Past, Present and Future: 5. Gramsci and international relations: a general perspective with examples from recent US policy toward the Third World Enrico Augelli and Craig Murphy
6. The three hegemonies of historical capitalism Giovanni Arrighi
7. The hegemonic transition in East Asia: a historical perspective Barry Gills
8. Internationalisation and democratisation: southern Europe, Latin America and the world economic crisis Otto Holman
9. Soviet socialism and passive revolution Kees Van Der Pijl
10. Structural issues of global governance Robert Cox.

Subject Areas: International relations [JPS]