REALISM and NEOREALISM

* Focusing on the reality of conflict in IR + the positive function of “power politics”
* Assumptions:

(1) state is the primary actor and the of analysis

(2) IR takes place in anarchical environment

(3) state acts rationally to pursuit interests in terms of power

E.H. Carr

* Rejecting normative character of liberal internationalism; wishing more than thinking ® the failure of League of Nations proved the inadequacy of pure aspirations as the basis for science of IR ® emphasizing on the realities of power, that is the unequal distribution of power in IR, to understand the root causes of war

* Liberal arguments of harmony and peace reflected the interests of "satisfied powers" to preserve status quo ® the post war system has been created by the victors of war that was unlikely to receive the support of those such as Germany ® for non-satisfied powers, harmony and peace is a universal tyranny

* The pursuit of national Powel is natural ® clashes of national interests were inevitable ® minimizing such clashes required a rough balance of powers between states

H.J Morgenthau

* Scientific inclination ® eager to build theory based on "reality" of IR from which certainties and predictions could be deduced
* Six principles of realism ® (1) objective laws (2) the concept of interests defined in terms of power (3) the form and nature of state power will vary in time but the interest remain consistent (4) states are not moral actors (5) there is no universal set of moral principles (6) political sphere is autonomous
* Main argument ® politics is governed by human nature (will to power) + struggle between states and the pursuit of national interests is normal

K. Waltz

* Waltz neorealism was a critique of traditional realism and a response to liberal interdependency theory
* International system as separate realm with defined structure ® this system shapes state behavior; explaining why all states pursue similar foreign policy ® focusing on anarchical condition of international realm that imposes accumulation of power as a systemic requirement on states ® denouncing traditional realism as reductionist and put too much emphasis on behavior
* Three structures of international system: (1) the ordering principle of the system, that is non-hierarchic (2) the character of the units in the system, that is accumulating power (3) the distribution of the capabilities of the units in the system, that is unequal and constantly shifting distribution of power across the international system

Critics of Realism and Neorealism

* Marxist and Critical theory ® conservatism; preserving the status quo and reproducing the interests of dominant states
* Postmodernism ® questioning positivistic argument and such separate realm such as international system