The international politics of amour propre
Revisiting Rousseau’s place in international relations theory
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12923255 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Joshua D King (0000-0001-6805-1574, United States Military Academy, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 18 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 167-185 |
| Publication date | 2021-01-12 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of International Political Theory (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1755-0882 • E-ISSN: 1755-1722 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/1755088220983832 |
| OpenAlex | W3119463988 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 31 |
Realism, constructivism, and liberal institutionalism share the assumption that states are rational and self-maximizing actors. While these theories disagree as to whether states prioritize military power or economic wealth, they converge around the notion that states pursue these goods rationally and predictably. Complaints against and threats of defection from prominent international security and trade regimes, including NATO and the EU, raise doubts about states’ rationality and predictability. Perhaps these theories’ shared assumption about rational action has become an impediment to understanding state behavior and institutional cooperation. To enrich and to expand the conversation within international political theory, my article turns to Rousseau’s international political thought. Rousseau anticipates central arguments in each of the major traditions of IR theory but locates political self-interest in the sub-rational passion amour propre rather than in reason itself. Rousseau exemplifies a more nuanced way to understand the irrational roots of political motivation and the limits of international order. My paper traces the international implications of amour propre through Rousseau’s key texts on international politics and turns to his “Letter to Philopolis” as a way to re-frame Rousseau’s account of political responsibility
Epistemology · Institutionalism · International relations · International relations theory · Law and economics · Political philosophy · Political science · Politics · Rationality · Sociology · Law · Philosophy · Political Theory and Influence · Rousseau and Enlightenment Thought · War, Ethics, and Justification
Rousseau's Theodicy of Self-Love
Peace and War
Liberal Loyalty
The Realist Tradition and the Limits of International Relations
Social Theory of International Politics
Power and the Pursuit of Peace
Men and Citizens in the Theory of International Relations
The Return of Culture and Identity in IR Theory
Reading Rousseau in the nuclear age
Institutions, Strategic Restraint, and the Persistence of American Postwar Order
Structural Realism after the Cold War
Passions and interests revisited
The Corfu Channel Case
The Explanation of Amour-Propre
Reform and Resistance in the International Order
The Paradox of “Just War” in Rousseau's Theory of Interstate Relations
Europe’s Other Democratic Deficit
Janus and Minerva
The Tragedy of Great Power Politics
Theory of international politics
Rousseau and the Melodious Language of Freedom
The demand for international regimes
Anarchy is what states make of it
To Persuade without Convincing
The poverty of neorealism
Re-Reading Rousseau in the Post-Cold War World
Unraveling the Central State, but How? Types of Multi-level Governance
Perspectives in Political Science, 1903-1928
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |