Synopses & Reviews
Koskenniemi traces the emergence of a liberal sensibility relating to international matters in the late 19th century, and its subsequent decline after the Second World War. He combines legal analysis, historical and political critique and semi-biographical studies of key figures, including Hersch Lauterpacht, Carl Schmitt and Hans Morgenthau. Finally, his discussion of legal and political realism at American law schools ends in a critique of post-1960 "instrumentalism". This wide-ranging study provides a unique reflection on the future of critical international law.
Review
"...a wonderful history of ideas, drawing from a wealth of sources and acquainting the reader with the views of dozens of international lawyers. Unlike many other histories of ideas, it makes enjoyable reading throughout, yet is never lost in anecdotes. At this time of uncertainty about the role, place and function of international law in the international community, it asks the right questions and indicates possible answers." German Yearbook of International Law"...interesting and elegantly written...Koskenniemi brings an unusually sharp focus to the period of professional maturation when the European heritage in the field peaked and then started to decline." International Journal of Legal Information"Impressive" American Journal of International Law
Synopsis
Legal analysis, historical and political critique and biographical studies provide a history of international law.
Synopsis
Koskenniemi traces the emergence of a liberal sensibility relating to international matters in the late 19th century, and its subsequent decline after the Second World War. He combines legal analysis, historical and political critique and semi-biographical studies of key figures, including Hersch Lauterpacht, Carl Schmitt and Hans Morgenthau. Finally, his discussion of legal and political realism at American law schools ends in a critique of post-1960 "instrumentalism". This wide-ranging study provides a unique reflection on the future of critical international law.
Synopsis
'International law was born from the impulse to \'civilize\' late nineteenth-century attitudes towards race and society, argues Martti Koskenniemi in this extensive study of the rise and fall of modern international law. In a work of wide-ranging intellectual scope, now available for the first time in paperback, Koskenniemi combines legal analysis, historical and political critique and semi-biographical studies of key figures; he also considers the role of crucial institutions (such as the Institut de droit international and the League of Nations).\n
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Synopsis
Koskenniemi combines legal analysis, historical and political critique and semi-biographical studies to trace the emergence of a liberal sensibility relating to international matters in the late nineteenth century, and its subsequent decline post Second World War. This highly readable and learned study ends with a critique of post-1960 'instrumentalism'.
Synopsis
International law was born from the impulse to 'civilize' late nineteenth-century attitudes towards race and society, argues Martti Koskenniemi in this study of the rise and fall of modern international law. This book combines legal analysis, historical and political critique and semi-biographical studies of key figures and institutions.
About the Author
Martti Koskenniemi is Professor of International law at the University of Helsinki and Global Professor of Law at New York University. His publications include From Apology to Utopia: The Structure of International Legal Argument (1989), International Law Aspects of the European Union (1997) and State Succession: Codification Tested Against the Facts (co-edited with Pierre Michel Eisemann in 1999).
Table of Contents
Introduction; 1. 'The legal conscience of the civilized world'; 2. Sovereignty: a gift of civilization; 3. International law as philosophy: Germany 1871-1933; 4. International law as sociology: French 'solidarism' 1871-1950; 5. Lauterpacht: the Victorian tradition in international law; 6. Out of Europe: Carl Schmitt, Hans Morgenthau and the turn to 'international relations'; Epilogue.