Political Realism in International Theory

In this 1996 book, Roger Spegele develops a new version of realism which stresses links between ethics and international politics.

Roger D. Spegele (Author)

9780521554039, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 August 1996

308 pages, 6 b/w illus.
23.6 x 15.6 x 2.7 cm, 0.55 kg

"...Spegele's ordering principles are useful, and persuasive, and his treatment of every perspective appropriately critical....this erudite and well-crafted study lives up to its advance billing as a coherent, viable, and attractive defense of realism." Robert M.A. Crawford, American Political Science Review

In this 1996 book Roger Spegele argues that in the past international theorists have failed to recognise that there is not one conception of international relations, subdivided into different theories and approaches, but at least three wholly different conceptions of the subject. Though scholars are increasingly prepared to accept this, there is still no consensus about what to call these conceptions, how to describe them, and why they should be studied. This book attempts to fill this gap. The author first examines two conceptions of IR - positivism-empiricism and emancipatory international relations - which challenge political realism. He then defends a revised version of realism, called 'evaluative political realism', from challenges arising from its rivals, with the aim of defining a conception of political realism which is coherent, viable, and attractive.

Part I: 1. Theory and practice in international relations
2. Positivist-empiricism and international relations
3. Emancipatory international relations: a first cut
Part II. 4. Evaluative political realism: a beginning
5. State and state-systems in evaluative political realism
6. Evaluative political realism and human nature
7. Evaluative political realism and historical realism
8. Evaluative political realism as moral realism
9. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: International relations [JPS]