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Realism
Realism
Realism
Jonathan Haslam
Realism is a spectrum of ideas which revolve around the four central propositions of Political
Groupism, Egoism, International Anarchy and Power Politics.
Core Assumptions:
1) People are essentially selfish and competitive, meaning that egoism is the defining
characteristic of human nature.
2) State-System operates in a context of international anarchy, in that there is no authority
higher than the sovereign state.
Egoism:
1) States are:
(i) The most important actor on the world stage
(ii) Answers to no higher authority i.e. sovereign (supreme power) over its territory
and populace
(iii) No other actor above them can wield its legitimacy or coercive capability to
govern the global system.
2) World politics is viewed as:
(i) Ceaseless
(ii) Repetitive struggle for power where strong dominates the weak
(iii) Inherently a constant possibility of war
3) International Anarchy can lead even well intentioned leaders to practice self-help i.e.
increasing the military strength and opportunistically aligning with others to deter
potential threats.
4) The possibility of rival powers cooperating on arms control or other security issues of
common interests cannot be precluded.
5) Asserts that cooperation will be rare because states worry about:
(i) Unequal distribution of relative gains (result from cooperation to disadvantage of
one of the parties)
(ii) Possibility that other states will cheat on agreements.
Machiavelli
People in general are ungrateful, fickle, and deceitful, eager to avoid dangers and avid for gain,
and while you are useful to them they are all with you, offering you their blood, their property,
and their sons so long as danger is remote, but when it approaches they turn on you.
6) Obligation of every state- the goal to which all other national objectives should be
subordinated- is to promote its national interest and to acquire power for this purpose,
Might makes right
7) A states philosophical or ethical preferences are neither good nor bad. What matters is
whether they serve its self-interest.
Thucydides
The standard of justice depends on the equality of power to compel.the strong do what they
have the power to do and the weak accept what they have to accept.
8) Struggle for power i.e. according Thomas Hobbes a war of all against all- and the
possibility of eradicating the instinct for power is a hopeless utopian aspiration.
9) Self-Help can lead to security dilemma i.e. as a state builds up its power to protect itself;
others inevitably become threatened and are likely to respond in kind. Arms race is one
common manifestation of security dilemma.
10) If all states seek to maximize power, stability will result by maintaining a balance of
power, facilitated by shifts in:
(i) Formation of alliances
(ii) Decay of opposing alliances to counter each others expansionist moves
11) Policies are driven by strategic imperatives that may require national leaders to disregard
moral norms i.e. actions that are dictated by national interest must be carried out no
matter how repugnant they might seem in light of private morality.
Krauthammer 1993
Ignoring ones interest, squandering ones resources in fits of altruism, argues a prominent
realist, is the fastest road to national disaster. For a national leader, thinking with ones
heart is a serious offence. Foreign Policy is not social work.
1) Famous Realists:
Classical Realism explains about the human nature i.e. selfishness, egoism and relates it
to the power politics. The fundamental aspects of human nature is to drive for power and
dominate others.
(ii) Offensive Realism
Domination is an unwise strategy for survival of the State and seeking hegemony can
result into dangerous conflicts between the States with its peers.
Therefore Polarity (distribution of power amongst the Great Powers) is a key concept.