The science of international politics is in its infancy. Down to 1914, the conduct of international relations was the concern of persons professionally engaged in it. In democratic countries, foreign policy was traditionally regarded as outside the scope of party politics; and the representative organs did not feel themselves competent to exercise any close control over the mysterious operations of foreign offices. In Great Britain, public opinion was readily aroused if war occurred in any region ...
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Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Edition: Second Edition
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Macmillan & Co., London
Date Published: 1948
Description: Good. No Jacket. 5 1/2x8 1/2. 244 pages. Subtitle: An introduction to the study of internatiional relations. A reading copy-the text is unmarked, tight and clean, but the exterior spine is sunfaded and the front free endpaper has been removed. The book is useful and complete, just not an attractive collectors copy. read more
Edition: Second Edition, 9th Printing
Binding: Trade Paperback
Publisher: Harper Torch, New York
Date Published: 1973
ISBN-13:9780061311222ISBN:0061311227
Description: Bernstein, Ted (cover) Very Good. 7¾"-9¾" Tall. xii + 244 pp, index, introductions to both editions, 11 page listing of 1970 Harper Torch publications. Spine shows what seems to be light insect damage, corners bumped, slight edge wear, a little darkening. Interior is clean and unmarked. A nice copy. Originally written in 1937-39, this book went to press just as the bombs started falling in Europe. The second edition was published in 1946, but with only minimal changes to reflect the fact that ... read more
Description: First thus. 8vo., 139pp., stiff paper wrappers. An introduction to the study of international relations. Spine foxed, else fine. Review copy, slip laid in. read more
Description: Good. Collectible-Good No Dust Jacket Owner's name inside; pages clean; front paste down torn along hinge; cover corners & spine ends bumped. read more
Description: Very Good. Previously read with moderate shelf wear. No underlining or margin notes present. We are the Twin Cities' largest independent book store. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 1964
Description: Very Good. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. A little edge wear and rubbing to covers. Date stamp on title page. Otherwise a square, tight, unmarked book. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Harpercollins
Date Published: 1981
ISBN-13:9780061311222ISBN:0061311227
Description: New. '...this book is a monument to the human power of sane and detached analysis. In its examination of the collapse of the international system, it is utterly devoid of national bias, or that bitter denunciation of governments and men which marks so muc... read more
Edition: First Thus
Binding: Soft Pictoral Cover
Publisher: Harper & Row, New York
Date Published: 1964
Description: Very Good. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. This book is a monument to the human power of sane and detached analysis. In its examination of the collapse of the international system, it is utterly devoid of national bias, or that bitter denunciation of governments and men which marks so much recent literature dealing with the crisis. 243 pgs. with index. read more
"A good snapshot in time just prior to WWII of the ultimate causes of international conflict and the relative merits of utopianism and realism from the British perspective. The author seems to adhere to the realpolitik mode of thought, though he is still hopeful for a kinder, gentler future. Central tenets are that political power consists of military, economic, and information ("opinion") control and that determining the balance of power is the key to understanding international politics."
"Though we all know you can't judge a book by its cover, we sometimes ignore that a short book can be more dense and difficult than a much longer one.
So it was with E.H. Carr's work. This is a superb work of political philosophy. It is filled with insight that rings as true today, as it did in 1939, when he wrote it. But, it is like reading a book on philosophy. The density of concepts had me re-reading sentences twice and three times to make sure I took all the ideas in. While Carr illustrates his work broadly with many examples that are familiar and commonly understood, it still resides up a couple of levels of abstraction from my usual consumption of narrative history.
So, what was it all about? Well, Professor Carr is writing just after the outbreak of World War II. Though he never expresses it directly, he is obviously mad at the ninnies in the west who's head in the sky policies have brought all of this about. Yes, that's right, we've got an English historian writing a book during the phoney war phase of WWII, and he is mad at the west.
Why? It seems western thought after WWI took a decided turn to the utopian. We sought, collectively, to divorce international relations from power politics (that's right Woodrow, we are talking about you), and instead base the international system on such chimeras as "world public opinion" and the community of interests.
None of this ended up working out. We had the League of Nations, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Naval Disarmament Treaties. They all started from the premise that morality, without reference to power, is what should govern the affairs of nations. Furthermore, there were no intractable differences between nations, for all that needed to happen was an illumination on the benefits of the status quo to nations like Germany, Japan and Italy.
Carr thinks all of this is hogwash. He stands for the simple and intuitive proposition that morality and power have to go hand in hand for a succesful foreign policy. Morality without power is empty rhetoric. Naked power is inevitably resisted. Cloaking one with the other is what is required for succes. This may seem common sensical these days, but in a world reeling from the impact of the "War to End War." You can imagine how western thinking got a little off course.
Carr is a member of distinguished class of British historians, including AJP Taylor and Trevor Roeper that lived through the two great wars and provided invaluable insight into their origins. Interestingly, though Carr was a defender of the realist school, he also became an ardent supporter of the accomplishments of the Soviet Union (the imaginary utopia of all imaginary utopias). Like AJP Taylor, while his analysis of the interwar era is a tour-de-force of scholarship, after the second world war, he seems to have lost his way. Taylor became so rabidly anti-German he opposed NATO for Germany's participation. Carr saw so much virtue in Stalin's programme, he became convinced of the flaws of the profit motive and advocated for a socialist-planned economy.
Well, you can't be right all of the time. This book is subtitled an introduction to international relations. It certainly has more to do with that than the 1930s proper. This is a book written by a brilliant mind, and its prescience about a number of outcomes is startling at times. While it was not a "pleasure read" by any measure, it definitely left me wiser for having read it."
"A masterpiece. A political science text that manages to be a page-turner. Carr's analysis is as insightful as his prose is engaging. A timeless book that can be profitably read again and again. Thoroughly enjoyable, regardless of one's field of expertise."
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