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Return of the Theorists: Classical theorists brought back to life

40 living International Relations theorists interview 40 dead ones

Contemporary International Relations is as much a conversation between the living and the dead as it is among the living. Its debates are thoroughly rooted in and shaped by the thought of many bygone minds, both ancient and modern.

With this in mind, The Return of the Theorists presents 40 imagined dialogues with foundational theorists. They run the gamut from Homer and Confucius to Hedley Bull and Jean Bethke Elshtain, and span almost three millennia of human history, comprising representatives of a variety of cultures. The interviewers consist of more than forty international relations scholars and political theorists. They too cut across cultures, continents and almost three generations, and each is an expert on the work of the thinker invited.

Co-edited by DIIS researcher Peer Schouten, The Return of the Theorists will be of interest to anyone who has tried to enter the mind of bygone thinkers in political thought and International Relations. Two of its chapters are co-authored by DIIS staff: Rens van Munster interviewed Lewis Mumford and Peer Schouten John Dewey.

DIIS Eksperter

Peer Schouten
Peace and violence
Senior Researcher
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The Return of the Theorists
The Return of the Theorists
Dialogues with Great Thinkers in International Relations