The Theory of Realism
RealPolitik or Power Politics
• The tenets of realism go back several
centuries and appear to many over time as
eternal truths.
• We see much commonality in both ancient
and modern thinking about international
relations.
• Modern diplomacy is still often based on
Realist theory.
Realist thinkers include:
Sun Tzu (Ancient China)
Thucydides (Ancient Greece)
Machiavelli (Medieval Italy)
Thomas Hobbes (civil war torn England)
Mao Tse Tung (Communist China)
Hans J. Morgenthau (USA 1950s)
They have all come to similar conclusions about the
characteristics of the international system that can
be grouped together as the theory of realism.
Realism is a theory based on power politics
Main Assumptions:
1. States are most important actors
2. Unitary-Rational Decision-making
3. International system is anarchic and conflictprone: often zero-sum situations
4. All States must pursue power to survive
5. States balance against threats
6. Morality has no place in international politics
7. International politics more important than
domestic politics.
8. Value Relative over Absolute Gains
Why do Realists claim that states must pursue
power or that morality has no place in world
politics?
•The world is anarchic and it is a self-help system.
To survive states must pursue power.
•Also, if there is no higher authority, then there is no
international law that states must abide by.
Why is international politics seen as more
important than domestic politics by Realists?
• If you do not take care of international politics,
there may no longer be any domestic politics.
This is a point made by Machiavelli.
• Domestic politics is only important to the extent
that it strengthens or weakens a state.
• Also, since states are essentially the same,
domestic regime type and institutions do not
matter much for world politics.
Anarchy makes conflict in the system inevitable.
Realists understand the implications of the
security dilemma but see them as unavoidable.
Anarchy forces states to compete against each
other in a self-help system.
To survive, states must try to increase their power
by:
1. Internal development
2. Conquest
3. Alliances (balancing)
Power:
• A central concept in international
relations.
• Level of power affects state strategies and
outcomes of various contests (military
conflicts, economic conflicts, and other
negotiations.
• Power is both built on tangible and
intangible attributes.
• Power leads to influence. Power helps a
country win international contests.
• Concept used often by diplomats and other
analysts to compare countries.
• Power is relative, not absolute. We can
only say that the United States is powerful
compared to others, for example.
Attributes of Power
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Military capabilities (troops, technology)
Size of economy (GDP),
Sophistication of economy and technology
Population,
Geography (few borders, mountains, location)
Internal cohesion (stability)
Patriotism
Natural resources (oil, minerals, food)
Reputation
Education, information
Alliances (sometimes unpredictable).
• Some of these attributes are tangible,
such as military capabilities and natural
resources, while others are intangible such
as patriotism and reputation.
• Thus, sometimes it is difficult ranking
states by power.
•For example, why did USA lose the
Vietnam war??
What makes some countries superpowers?
• Superpowers are very strong countries that can
project their power around the world.
• By power projection we mean the ability to
deploy troops around the world as well as deliver a
full-scale nuclear attack.
• Such capabilities require a sophisticated
economy and society. Presently, only the
United States can be classified as a
superpower.
• The Soviet Union was a superpower until
the collapse of its economy and communism
(1990), which greatly eroded Russia’s ability
to field a large army and navy.
Rationality and Decision-making
• Assumption that actors are rational
• Actors must know what is in their best
interest
• Actors know how to maximize utility
• Choose ranked options that maximize
utility
• In IR, states are often assumed to be
unitary rational actors
Rationality and Realism
• To Realists, Rationality means to value
short-term over long-term calculations due
to insecurity.
• Value Relative gains over Absolute gains.
– Absolute gains = both sides in a
relationship gain something.
– Relative gains = both sides gain something
but one actor gains more.
The Balance of power
To deter aggression by others,
states balance against each other
so no one country becomes too
strong.
Realists typically focus on the balance of power,
which may be regional or sometimes used to discuss a
dyad of two countries.
The Concert of Europe that emerged after the
Napoleonic Wars is a good example.
Problem: The balance of power seems bound to fail
in the long-run and could be said to only delay war.
Some Realists would disagree.
However, the concept is rather difficult to define and
this part of the theory difficult to test.
•Realists believe that power imbalances lead
to war since powerful states, unchecked,
will try to acquire more power.
•Balancing by forming alliances with other
states is the quickest way to check the
power of potentially aggressive states.
Neo-Realism
Why reform Realism?
Neo-Realism (Waltz) borrows many of the
traditional assumptions of Realism.
Differences:
• System structure dictates the environment
of international interactions.
• System structure is determined by polarity –
number of major powers.
• States are mostly defensive in nature.
• Bipolar systems are more stable than multipolar systems – balancing more effective and
predictable.
What do you think about
Realism?
• Relevant or Accurate?
• Logical?
• Assumptions useful, such as unitaryrational actors?
• Role of domestic politics?
• Morality?
• Does Anarchy really make conflict
inevitable?