Classical Theory in International Relations

Classical political theorists such as Thucydides, Kant, Rousseau, Smith, Hegel, Grotius, Mill, Locke and Clausewitz are often employed to explain and justify contemporary international politics and are seen to constitute the different schools of thought in the discipline. However, traditional interpretations frequently ignore the intellectual and historical context in which these thinkers were writing as well as the lineages through which they came to be appropriated in International Relations. This collection of essays provides alternative interpretations sensitive to these political and intellectual contexts and to the trajectory of their appropriation. The political, sociological, anthropological, legal, economic, philosophical and normative dimensions are shown to be constitutive, not just of classical theories, but of international thought and practice in the contemporary world. Moreover, they challenge traditional accounts of timeless debates and schools of thought and provide new conceptions of core issues such as sovereignty, morality, law, property, imperialism and agency.

Author: Beate Jahn
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 11/01/2006
Pages: 334
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.20lbs
Size: 8.94h x 6.06w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9780521686020

About the Author
Jahn, Beate: - Beate Jahn is a Senior Lecturer in International Relations in the Department of International Relations at the University of Sussex. She is the author of The Cultural Construction of International Relations (2000) and Politik und Moral (1993).

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