Before the First World War, International
Relations were considered to be the responsibility of the ambassadors alone
however following the war a need was felt to revive this field. This is when
the idea of developing International Relation theories was born. The main aim
of which was to prevent war.
An important theory is that of Realism. Political
realism is a philosophical theory that attempts to describe and explain
International Relations. It assumes
power and self-interest to be the basic source of political action; in both
local and international spheres.
Classical realism emphasises upon the
concept of national interest. Generally, the theory aims to support political
practice. Moral judgement over political success is highly disapproved of. On the
contrary, although Pluralism shares its fundamental assumption with realism, it
introduces an idea of interdependence among nations on the international level.
It takes into consideration that human nature is a vital force when studying International
Relations. Waltz associated this approach with economics where “states prefer
survival over other ends”.
However, these theories remain incomprehensible
by the public which calls for the need to revive the manner in which theories
are developed. The constantly evolving nature of International Relations needs
to be accounted for. Both classical and scientific methods of theory
development should be used so as to balance the analytical as well as
scientific means of evaluation and prediction.
I agree that mixed methods are needed to help understand a variety of approaches to IR. But I will challenge you by saying that even if the public does not understand the theories we use, it does not mean that our approach to developing theories should be changed. Yes we should improve our theories, but no we should not create simplistic theories that will help the general public understand general concepts (e.g. the democratic peace theory) without providing context. Well-thought out theories are critical if the field is to advance. This will then hopefully transfer over into the public realm.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Sir that the approach to develop theories should change depending on whether the public understands it or not. I feel every person has within them some sort of approach in one way or another and their thought processes are in line with a theory of international relations, what needs to be done is that the public should be educated more about the popular and old theories. That would not only make things more clearer for them, it would even make things easier for state.
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