REALISM

Merve Doaner
Sinem Sonugr
Hasan Bilici
Nuran Helval
Ulkar Jamilli
 REALISM
Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt

Introduction: the timeless wisdom of Realism

The story of Realism begins with a mythical tale of

the idealist or utopian writers of the interwar
period.

After World War One, the idealist, a term that

realist writers have retrospectively imposed on the
interwar scholars, focused much of their attention
on understanding the cause of war so as to find a
remedy for its existence.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 GREAT DEBATE: (late 1930s and early 1940s)
interwar idealist a new generation of realist
writers
Realist emergeced victorious and rest of
international relations story is, in many respects, a
footnote to Realism.

Realism offered some prescriptions to

American leaders for become global
hegomon. Realism taught American leaders:
to focus on interest rather than ideology,
to seek peace through strength,
to recognize that great powers can coexist even if
they have antithetical values and beliefs.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Classical Realism up to 20th
century
Modern Realism 1939-1979

Raison detat: means reason of

state or national interest.
Friedrich Meinecke: Raison detat is the
fundamental principle of international
conduct, the States First Law of Motion. It
tells the statesman what he must do to
preserve the health and strength of the
Source: State.
Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Realists are sceptical of the idea that
universal moral principles exist.

Machiavelli argued that these principles

positively harmfull if adhered to by state
leaders. It was imperative that state leaders a
different kind of morality which accorded not
to traditional Christian virtues but the
necessity and prudence.

Dual Moral Standard: one moral standard

for individual citizens living inside the state
and a different standard for the state in its
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
external
(eds.), The relations
Globalisation with
of World Politics: An other states.
Introduction to International Relations,
 There are three core elements that identify with
Realism:

STATISM: Statism is the term given to idea of the states as the

legitimate representative of the collective will of the people.

Realism has state centric approach.

Anarchy: Chaos, lawlessness, lack of central authority.

Realist draw a sharp distinction between domestic and

international politics. One major factor that realist argue sets
international politics apart from domestic politics is that while the
latter is able to constrain and channel the power-seeking
ambitions of individuals in a less violent direction.

For realists, it is self evident that the incidence of violence is

greater at the international than the domestic level.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 SURVIVAL: The first priority for state leaders.

All states wish to perpetuate their existence.

States with more power stand a better chance of surviving.

SELF-HELP:Principle action in an anarchical system.

In an anarchical environment, states cannot assume other

states will come to their defence even if they are allies.

Machiavelli: Todays friend can quickly become tomorrows

enemy.

Balance of power: Balance of power seek to ensure an

equilibrium of power in which case no state or coalition of states
is in a position to dominate all the others.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 MELIAN DIALOGUE: conflict
between two great powers in the
Ancient Greek: Athens and
Sparta(Melos)
Melos Idealist
Athens Realist
Melian Dialogue includes realist view
of number of key concepts such as
self interest, balance of power,
alliances..
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
Realism, or many ?

There is no single tradition of political

realism, but rather a knot of historically
constituted tensions, contradictions,
and evasions. (Walker)
Different types of Realism:
Classical realism
Modern realism
Neorealism

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The Classification of Realism
storical Realism
Machiavelli is the leading classical exponent
of historical realism.

Machiavelli recognized the flux of political life

and he believed that change is a continuous
process.

Carr is the modern Machiavelli, advocating a

foreign policy which recognizes the interplay of
power and morality, consent and coercion.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 b. Structural Realism I
Structural realism lineage begins with
Thucydides representation of power
politics as a law of human behaviour.
Morgenthau: politics, like society in
general, is governed by objective laws
that have their roots in human nature.
International politics is driven by
endless struggle for power which has
its roots in human nature.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
Structural Realism II

The cause of conflict is based on

anarchic structure of the
international system.

Waltz: anarchy prevents states

from entering into cooperative
agreements to end the state of war.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
beral Realism

Thomas Hobbes famous book,

Leviathan, include pessimistic
portrayal of human nature.

Hobbes believed that states are less

vulnerable than individuals in the
state of nature and states are able to
coexist with other sovereigns.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The essential Realism

Statism
Max Weber: the monopoly of the
legitimate use of physical force within a
given territory.

Members of the political community

living inside the state to pursue the
good life. However, on the outside, in
the relations among independent
Source: sovereign states,
Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt insecurities, threats.
, Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Morgenthau: mans control over the
minds and actions of other men.

According to Realists;
power is a relational concept; one does
not exercise power in vacuum, but in
relation to another entity.
power is a relative concept; calculations
need to be made not only about ones
own power capabilities, but about the
power that other state actor possess.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Waltz tries to overcome the problem
by shifting the focus from power to
capabilities.

Resource strength does not always

lead to military victory.
For instance; Six Day War (1967)
Realists argue that an open, free-
trade economic system depends on
the existence of a hegemon.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Survival
Survival is the precondition for attaining
all other goals.
Recent controversy among defensive
and offensive realists about states are
security or power maximizers.
Defensive realists states have
security as their principal interest.
Offensive realists the ultimate
goal of all states is to achieve a
hegemonic position.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Henry Kissenger: a nations survival
is its first and ultimate responsibility;
it cannot be compromised or put to
risk.
An ethic of responsibility is frequently
used as a justification for breaking
the laws of war, as in the case of the
US decision to drop nuclear bombs
on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Self-help
Waltz brought to a deeper understanding of
international system within which states coexist.

Underlying the regularity of war and conflict

which related with domestic politics. Differences
between domestic and international orders lies
in their structure.

Realizing security issue belongs to self-help.

Term of insecurity emerged as a security

dilemma.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 How exist the security dilemma according to
Wheeler and Booth?
When the military preparations of one state
create an unresolvable uncertainity in the mind
of another as to whether those preparations are
for defensive purposes or for offensive
purposes.

Another question is that is there any escape

from security dilemma?

There is a divergence in the realist camp

between structural realists and historical
realists.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 In a self help system,structural realists argue
that the balance of power(BOP) emerged even
in the absence of conscious policy to maintain
balance.

All vareties of Realism are united in the view

that the balance of power is not stable
condition. Such as; Liberal realists..

Whether it is the contrived balance or more

furtious balance , BOP broken and new ones
emerged because of lacking trust.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The stag hunt in Man,the State and War, Waltz revisits
Rousseaus parable:
Assume that five men who have acquired a rudimentary
ability to speak and to understand each other happen to
come together at a time when all of them suffer from
hunger. The hunger of each would be satisfied by the fifth
part of astag, so they agree to cooperate in a project to
trap one. But also, thehungerof any one of them will be
satisfied by a hare, so as a hare comes within reach, one of
them grabs it. The defector obtains the means of satisfying
his hunger, but in doing so permits the stag toescape. His
immediate interest prevails over his consideration for his
fellows.

In a self-system of international politics, the logic of self

interest mitigates against the provision of collective goods
such as securityor free trade.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The contemporary liberal sollution to
collective action problem through the
construction of regimes like World Trade
Organizations (WTO). Also contemporary
structural realists agree with liberals
despite realists believe co-operation is
harder to achieve.

It is because of this concern with relative

gains issues that realists argue that
cooperation is difficult to achieve in a
selfhelp system.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The fact that structural realists in particular
believed the bipolar system would continue
well into the twenty-first century further
contributed to the sense that realism was in
decay. Yet many realists have provided
explanations to account for the end of the
cold war and do not regard it to be a major
anomaly for realism. (Box 7.4)

End of the Soviet empire has become more

muted in the last few years as the world has
witnessed some of the most horrific conflicts
of the twentieth century.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Conclusion: Realism and the
globalization of world politics
Realists have consistently held that the
continuities in international relations are
more important than the changes, but
many find this to be increasingly
problematic in the present age of
globalization. But the importance of
realism has not been diminished by the
dynamics of globalization.

It has been argued that the end of cold war

dealt a fatal blow for Realism.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 Realism also continue to serve as a critical
weapon for revealing the interplay of
national interests beneath the rhetoric of
universalistic sentiments.

Thus realist has no problem understanding

aspects of world politics. What is interesting
about realist theory of globalization is the
acceptance of the militarization of the
international system, patterns of political
control and hegemmonic control.

Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 There are good reasons for thinking that the twenty first
century will be realist century.

In this period, democracy was dealt a fatal blow by the

Holocaust in Western sense and also Europe divided by
interests.

There is an allience between Realism and non-Western

leaders who recognized values are shared in particular
communities and knowledge is not grounded in
universal reason that global cultures are fragmented
and contested.

Thus rather than transforming global politics in its own

image, the West may need to become more realist in
order to surive next.
Source: Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt , Realism, in John Baylis and Steve Smith
(eds.), The Globalisation of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations,
 The Melian Dialogue
Thucydides

Includes comparison between idealism

and realism.

Source: Thucydides excerpts from History of Peloponnesian War reprinted in Paul R.

Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi (eds.), International Relations Theory: Realism, Pluralism,
Globalism, and Beyond (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and Bacon, 1999), pp.100-105.
 Athenian perspective of
realism
Unbalance of power

Individualistic desires

Ignorance of moral values

Source: Thucydides excerpts from History of Peloponnesian War reprinted in Paul R.

Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi (eds.), International Relations Theory: Realism, Pluralism,
Globalism, and Beyond (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and Bacon, 1999), pp.100-105.
 The strong do what
they have the power to
do, and the weak accept
what they have to
accept. (Athenians)

Source: Thucydides excerpts from History of Peloponnesian War reprinted in Paul R.

Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi (eds.), International Relations Theory: Realism, Pluralism,
Globalism, and Beyond (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and Bacon, 1999), pp.100-105.
 Melian perspective of
idealism
Believe in God

Justice

Moral values

Source: Thucydides excerpts from History of Peloponnesian War reprinted in Paul R.

Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi (eds.), International Relations Theory: Realism, Pluralism,
Globalism, and Beyond (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and Bacon, 1999), pp.100-105.
 Siege of
Melos city by
Athenians.

Source: Thucydides excerpts from History of Peloponnesian War reprinted in Paul R.

Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi (eds.), International Relations Theory: Realism, Pluralism,
Globalism, and Beyond (Boston, Mass.: Allyn and Bacon, 1999), pp.100-105.
 ON PRINCES AND THE
SECURITY OF THEIR
STATES
Niccolo Machiavelli

It is much safer to be feared than to

be loved, if one must choose.
(Niccolo Machiavelli)

Source: Machiavelli excerpts from The Prince reprinted in Paul R. Viotti and Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.105-107
 Cruelty or Clemency?

Is it Better to be Loved or Feared

Source: Machiavelli excerpts from The Prince reprinted in Paul R. Viotti and Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.105-107
 As a result: Love
depends on
subject but
prince has it in
his own hands to
create the fear
and have to
avoid arousing
hatred.
Source: Machiavelli excerpts from The Prince reprinted in Paul R. Viotti and Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.105-107
 OF THE NATURAL CONDITION OF MANKIND
Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes:
Why conflict and violence
between individuals or states are
to be expected?

Source: Hobbes excerpts from Leviathan reprinted in Paul R.Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.108-110
 The nature made men equal.

From equality proceeds

difference.

From difference to war.

Source: Hobbes excerpts from Leviathan reprinted in Paul R.Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.108-110
 Three principal causes
of quarrel:
Competition invade for
gain
Diffedence invade for
safety
Glory invade for
reputation
Source: Hobbes excerpts from Leviathan reprinted in Paul R.Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.108-110
 The passions that
incline men to peace:

Fear of death
Desires of such things as are
necessary to commodious
living
A hope by their industry to
obtain them.
Source: Hobbes excerpts from Leviathan reprinted in Paul R.Viotti and Mark V. Kauppi
(eds.), International Relations Theory, pp.108-110