From Hierarchy To Anarchy

This book considers the rise of territoriality in international relations. Larkins takes the reader on a tour that moves from the mental horizons of Medieval European thought to the Renaissance. The end product is a theoretical and historical account of a momentous transformation that ultimately gives rise to the territorial state.

Hierarchy amidst Anarchy is a study of state security provisions, explaining not only why states cooperate, and with whom, but also why they choose the specific types of cooperation they do. In contrast to competing theories that explain international cooperation in terms of the desire to be "bigger" or "stronger", Weber insists that the key to understanding countries' international institutional choices can be found by focusing on economic theories of organization and, more specifically, transaction costs. Cross-sectional studies of two historical periods, the final years of the Napoleonic Wars (1812-15) and the post-1945 period – such contrasting security structures as NATO and the European Defense Community - are used to illustrate the argument.

'When the epistemology is sound, intelligence and hard work are sure to bring progress, as they have in this ambitious book by Robert Lieshout. Even some people, like me, who are not specialists in international relations, will find it useful.' - Mancur Olson, formerly of University of Maryland, US Between Anarchy and Hierarchy offers a stimulating new perspective on conflict and collaboration in international politics. Robert Lieshout's new book shows how decision-making within individual states influences foreign policy and, in turn, international politics. Using a sliding scale between anarchy and hierarchy, he shows how each political system can be defined, including the distinctly anarchic international system itself. By showing the impact which internal decision-making processes have on the structure of the international system, Professor Lieshout integrates a theory of foreign policy making into a theory of international politics.

Originally published in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War, the country was split into pro-fascists and pro-communists, the author felt that the conflict in Spain threatened to develop into an international war, perhaps an international civil war since the issue cut across frontier lines. The situation had no parallel at the time. The author looks back to wars of the sixteenth century to find a precedent for this dramatic duel between two political conceptions. Using examples from Europe including the conflict between Catholics and Protestants he shows that, as in England who led their own way at the time, there are alternative solutions and hopefully a way to find a middle ground.

1. The realist tradition

This book provides an erudite and fascinating account of the rise of territoriality in international relations. The physical extension of space is a taken-for-granted assumption of modern political and international theory; yet it has a history that needs to be registered and recognized. Larkins takes the reader on a tour that moves from the mental horizons of Medieval European thought through to the Renaissance. The end product is a theoretical and historical account of a momentous transformation that ultimately gives rise to the territorial state.

International relations are generally understood as a realm of anarchy in which countries lack any superior authority and interact within a Hobbesian state of nature. In Hierarchy in International Relations, David A. Lake challenges this traditional view, demonstrating that states exercise authority over one another in international hierarchies that vary historically but are still pervasive today. Revisiting the concepts of authority and sovereignty, Lake offers a novel view of international relations in which states form social contracts that bind both dominant and subordinate members. The resulting hierarchies have significant effects on the foreign policies of states as well as patterns of international conflict and cooperation. Focusing largely on U.S.-led hierarchies in the contemporary world, Lake provides a compelling account of the origins, functions, and limits of political order in the modern international system. The book is a model of clarity in theory, research design, and the use of evidence. Motivated by concerns about the declining international legitimacy of the United States following the Iraq War, Hierarchy in International Relations offers a powerful analytic perspective that has important implications for understanding America's position in the world in the years ahead.