Power, realism and constructivism

Framed by a new and substantial introductory chapter, this book collects Stefano Guzzini’s reference articles and some less well-known publications on power, realism and constructivism. By analysing theories and their assumptions, but also theorists following their intellectual paths, his analysis explores the diversity of different schools, and moves beyond simple definitions to explore their intrinsic tensions and fallacies. Guzzini’s approach to the analysis of power – within and outside International Relations – provides the common theme of the book through which the theoretical state of the art in IR is reassessed.

"Stefano Guzzini's range, cogency and sympathetic relation to his interlocutors are in full display in this collection of his best work. Best is best. For my money, Guzzini is the best straight-on IR theorist of his generation."

Nicholas Onuf
Professor Emeritus of Florida International University in Miami, USA.

Table of Contents

Introduction: power and the study of politics

Part I: Power
1. Structural Power: The Limits of Neorealist Power Analysis
2. The use and misuse of power analysis in international theory
3. From (alleged) unipolarity to the decline of multilateralism? A power-theoretical critique
4. Niklas Luhmann’s conceptualization of power
5. Pierre Bourdieu’s field analysis of relational capital, misrecognition and domination

Part II: Realism
6. The enduring dilemmas of realism in International Relations
7. The Different Worlds of Realism in International Relations
8. Foreign Policy without diplomacy: the Bush administration at a crossroads
9. Robert Gilpin: A Realist Quest for the Dynamics of Power
10. Strange’s oscillating realism: opposing the ideal - and the apparent

Part III: Constructivism
11. A reconstruction of constructivism in International Relations
12. The concept of power: a constructivist analysis
13. 'The Cold War is what we make of it’: when peace research meets constructivism in International Relations
14. Wendt’s constructivism: a relentless quest for synthesis’ with Anna Leander 15. Imposing coherence: the central role of practice in Friedrich Kratochwil’s theorising of politics, international relations and science

Epilogue: The significance and roles of teaching theory in International Relations