An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics
An argument for the classical realist approach to world politics

An Unwritten Future offers a fresh reassessment of classical realism, an enduring approach to understanding crucial events in the international political arena. Jonathan Kirshner identifies the fundamental flaws of classical realism’s would-be successors and shows how this older, more nuanced and sophisticated method for studying world politics better explains the formative events of the past. Kirshner also reveals how this approach is ideally equipped to comprehend the vital questions of the present—such as the implications of China’s rise, the ways that social and economic change alter the balance of power and the nature of international conflict, and the consequences of the end of the US-led postwar order for the future of world politics.

Laying out realism’s core principles, Kirshner discusses the contributions of the perspective’s key thinkers, including Thucydides, Hans Morgenthau, and Raymond Aron, among others. He illustrates how a classical realist approach gives new insights into major upheavals of the twentieth century, such as Britain’s appeasement of Nazi Germany and America’s ruinous involvement in Vietnam. Kirshner also addresses realism’s limits and explores contemporary issues, including the ascent of great power challengers, the political implications of globalization, and the diffusion of power in modern world politics.

A reexamination of the realist tradition, with a renewed emphasis on the crucial roles played by uncertainty, contingency, and contestation, An Unwritten Future demonstrates how a once-popular school of thought provides invaluable insights into pressing real-world problems.

1141364581
An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics
An argument for the classical realist approach to world politics

An Unwritten Future offers a fresh reassessment of classical realism, an enduring approach to understanding crucial events in the international political arena. Jonathan Kirshner identifies the fundamental flaws of classical realism’s would-be successors and shows how this older, more nuanced and sophisticated method for studying world politics better explains the formative events of the past. Kirshner also reveals how this approach is ideally equipped to comprehend the vital questions of the present—such as the implications of China’s rise, the ways that social and economic change alter the balance of power and the nature of international conflict, and the consequences of the end of the US-led postwar order for the future of world politics.

Laying out realism’s core principles, Kirshner discusses the contributions of the perspective’s key thinkers, including Thucydides, Hans Morgenthau, and Raymond Aron, among others. He illustrates how a classical realist approach gives new insights into major upheavals of the twentieth century, such as Britain’s appeasement of Nazi Germany and America’s ruinous involvement in Vietnam. Kirshner also addresses realism’s limits and explores contemporary issues, including the ascent of great power challengers, the political implications of globalization, and the diffusion of power in modern world politics.

A reexamination of the realist tradition, with a renewed emphasis on the crucial roles played by uncertainty, contingency, and contestation, An Unwritten Future demonstrates how a once-popular school of thought provides invaluable insights into pressing real-world problems.

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An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics

An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics

by Jonathan Kirshner
An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics

An Unwritten Future: Realism and Uncertainty in World Politics

by Jonathan Kirshner

Hardcover

$39.95 
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Overview

An argument for the classical realist approach to world politics

An Unwritten Future offers a fresh reassessment of classical realism, an enduring approach to understanding crucial events in the international political arena. Jonathan Kirshner identifies the fundamental flaws of classical realism’s would-be successors and shows how this older, more nuanced and sophisticated method for studying world politics better explains the formative events of the past. Kirshner also reveals how this approach is ideally equipped to comprehend the vital questions of the present—such as the implications of China’s rise, the ways that social and economic change alter the balance of power and the nature of international conflict, and the consequences of the end of the US-led postwar order for the future of world politics.

Laying out realism’s core principles, Kirshner discusses the contributions of the perspective’s key thinkers, including Thucydides, Hans Morgenthau, and Raymond Aron, among others. He illustrates how a classical realist approach gives new insights into major upheavals of the twentieth century, such as Britain’s appeasement of Nazi Germany and America’s ruinous involvement in Vietnam. Kirshner also addresses realism’s limits and explores contemporary issues, including the ascent of great power challengers, the political implications of globalization, and the diffusion of power in modern world politics.

A reexamination of the realist tradition, with a renewed emphasis on the crucial roles played by uncertainty, contingency, and contestation, An Unwritten Future demonstrates how a once-popular school of thought provides invaluable insights into pressing real-world problems.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780691166773
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication date: 09/20/2022
Series: Princeton Studies in International History and Politics , #186
Pages: 336
Product dimensions: 6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Jonathan Kirshner is professor of political science and international studies at Boston College, and the Stephen and Barbara Friedman Professor of International Political Economy Emeritus at Cornell University. His many books include Currency and Coercion (Princeton) and Hollywood’s Last Golden Age.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix

Preface xi

Introduction and Overview 1

Chapter 1 What Is Classical Realism? Thucydides and His Descendants 13

Chapter 2 Reclaiming Realism 43

Chapter 3 Why We Need Classical Realism: Enduring Puzzles 81

Chapter 4 The Limits of Classical Realism 124

Chapter 5 Realism, Economics, and Politics 147

Chapter 6 Classical Realism and the Rise of China 180

Chapter 7 Power, Politics, and Prospect: The Craft of Classical Realism 214

Acknowledgments 241

Notes 243

Index 313

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A brilliant and original study of one of the most important debates in the study of international relations."—Gideon Rachman, chief foreign affairs columnist, Financial Times

“I love this book—even the parts I don’t agree with. Combining classical realism, constructivism, normative theorizing, and a deep reading of history, economics, and war, Jonathan Kirshner offers a serious retelling of the story of Europe and the United States during the twentieth century—and a helpful, if sobering, guide to managing in the twenty-first.”—Deborah Avant, University of Denver

“In this brilliant tour de force, Jonathan Kirshner deploys all his many talents to mount a robust and convincing defense of classical realism, breathing life back into a tradition that has for too long been dominated by those who would reduce the study of living nations to ‘units of analysis’ and history to a series of ‘data points.’ A clarion call to those trying to make sense of the uncertain and open-ended times through which we are all now living.”—Michael Cox, professor emeritus of international relations and founding director of LSE IDEAS, London School of Economics



An Unwritten Future is a landmark contribution to understanding the foundations of international relations theory—and the most sustained defense yet of the classical realist point of view. Grounded in a deep appreciation of Thucydides’s Peloponnesian War, Jonathan Kirshner’s book offers important insights into international relations theories and a highly critical account of both their significance and limitations.”—Michael Doyle, Columbia University



“Jonathan Kirshner has written a careful, honest, and effective critique of structural realist and rationalist theorizing about international relations, clearing space for a sophisticated classical realist contribution to IR theory.”—Alastair Iain Johnston, Harvard University

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