Synopses & Reviews
In the tradition of the English School of International Relations theory, this book seeks to show how continuities in international politics outweigh the changes. The author demonstrates how the world is neither one of anarchy, as put forward by realists, nor is it a fully cosmopolitan order, as argued by those on the other side of the theoretical spectrum. Instead, it is a world of states who acknowledge a set of moral constraints that exists between them.
Review
"Robert Jackson's latest splendid contribution to international theory is an eloquent warning against two common pitfalls: assuming that the present is a wholly new page in international history, and believing that the many facets of international life can be boiled down to a grand but simple synthesis. Through a wide-ranging mastery of history and political theory, he cogently dissects a complex reality, and does so with grace and style. This is a first-rate work of scholarship that will become a major part of the literature of the English School."
--David Clinton, Tulane University
"This insightful collection of essays complements and extends the argument of Professor Jackson's brilliant study of The Global Covenant. Jackson's humane and skeptical approach to the theory of international relations is distinguished by profound historical reflection and cogent philosophical argumentation. Particularly valuable here is his first- rate exposition and critique of various thinkers such as Martin Wight, Richard Falk, and John Rawls--making this book an excellent contribution to the literature on international thought."
--David C. Hendrickson, Professor of Political Science, Colorado College
"Robert Jackson has long been one of the most thoughtful scholars working at the intersection of political thought and international relations. In these essays, we see him conversing with some of the most important and influential thinkers and issues in the field, from varieties of realism, to his continuing dialogue with Martin Wight and the 'English school' to more recent thinkers like John Rawls and Richard Falk. The result is a series of engagements in international political theory that all who are interested in the field can read with both pleasure and profit and which further refine the pluralist vision Jackson has been developing over the last few years."
--Nicholas Rengger, Professor of Political Theory and International Relations, St Andrews University
About the Author
Robert Jackson is Professor of Political Science at Boston University.
Table of Contents
International Thought * Conversing with Thrasymachus: Voices of Realism * Martin Wight, International Theory, and the Good Life * Martin Wight's Theology of Diplomacy * Changing Faces of Sovereignty * Knots and Tangles of International Obligation * Jurisprudence for a Solidarist World: Richard Falk's "Grotian Movement" * Dialectical Justice in World Affairs * Lifting the Veil of Ignorance : John Rawls' Society of Peoples