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Shawn has a masters of public administration, JD, and a BA in political science.
International relations is the study of interactions between state and non-state actors in the world. Political realism is one of the major theories attempting to explain the relations among states. Political realism seeks to explain international relations between states in terms of power.
In the context of international relations, power is basically the capability to make another state do something it would not otherwise do or to stop it from doing something it wants to do. A quick example will illustrate the concept.
Let's say you are the leader of a small country surrounded by some unfriendly states that like your beachfront property. Fortunately, you have an alliance with a neighbor that is stronger than all the bullies and prevents them from invading your country. Of course, there's no such thing as a free lunch. Your ally expects you to open your domestic markets to its imports free of any tariffs or other trade barriers. Now, you normally would not do this, but your citizens enjoy their beachfront and agree to keep your ally happy in exchange for making sure the bullies don't take the beach.
What makes a state powerful? Remember that power is about the capability of influencing another. In the world of states, this capability is based on both tangible and intangible characteristics of the state. Tangible characteristics include such things as a state's size, geography, natural resources, economy, military, technological development and population. Intangible characteristics include things like national will, popular support of the government and ideology. While military power is not the only avenue to power on the world stage, realists tend to think it's the most important.
You can think of realists as the cynics of international relations. Realists make the following assumptions about the world:
Just like not everyone can be a star athlete, not all countries have the natural capacity to become powerful enough to go it alone in international relations. And just like some schoolyards, there are sometimes bullies in the international arena that like to throw their weight around. What can a weak state do? According to realists, the answer lies with the principle of balance of power, which is the general idea of the power of one or more states balancing the power of one or more other states to create a state of equilibrium. In our example, the bullied state should team up with other states to counteract the power of the bully.
Like many theories, realism has evolved over time. Neorealism, also called structural realism, focuses on the structure and distribution of power in the international system rather than on the power characteristics of individual states. A key concept in neorealism is that of polarity, which describes the power structure in the international system. You can think of a pole as a state that is a power center that attracts others into its sphere of influence, much like the pole of a magnet attracts metal filings or a sun's gravity attracts planets into an orbit around it.
Let's take a quick look at the ways the international system may be structured according to structural realism. A multipolar system is one in which there are several different centers of power and each state in the system pretty much acts independently of each other. Europe in the 19th century is an example.
A bipolar system is one in which there are two states serving as power centers of relatively equal strength. Other states in the system gravitate to one of two power centers in alliance and are dominated by it. The Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States is an example of a bipolar system where the world was pretty much divided between those in alliance with the USSR and those in alliance with the United States.
A unipolar system, also called hegemony, exists when one state, called a hegemon, is able to dominate the international system, allowing it to determine the rules by which political and economic relations are carried out by the states. Some argue that after the Cold War, we entered a unipolar world with the United States as the hegemon.
Like most political theories, realism has its strengths and weaknesses. Neorealism is focused on some of the biggest and most important issues in international relations, including war, preventing war, balance of power, alliances and arms races, and is often a good starting place in understanding these issues. It can make important contributions in understanding conflicts and preventing conflicts before they start by providing an understanding of power and why states often act the way they do.
While realism can sometimes explain a lot, it seldom gives the whole picture. Some argue that realists overemphasize military and economic power as the currencies of power and ignore the contributions of culture and ideology. While states are still the dominant actors on the world stage, the role of international government organizations, like the UN and World Bank, nongovernmental organizations, such as the Red Cross, and large international corporations are becoming more influential.
Moreover, states don't always act simply for the pursuant to power, as demonstrated by international cooperation in humanitarian aid efforts during disasters. Finally, the theory's view of the unimportance of ethics in international relations fails to find support in the growing global movement towards internationally recognized human rights. In a nutshell, the theory provides too simple of a model to completely explain the complex world of international relations.
Let's review what we've learned. Political realism is a theory that attempts to explain international relations in terms of power. Political realism assumes that humans are selfish by nature, the most important actors in international politics are states, the international environment is one of anarchy where states are constantly in conflict with each other in pursuit of their rational self-interest and morality is not only not important but can be counterproductive to the overarching goal of survival. Since states differ in their capacity for power, states often will form alliances to create a balance of power to prevent political instability and war.
Neorealism, also known as structural realism, focuses on the structure of the international system rather than the individual power characteristics of each state. Neorealism believes that the international system can be described in terms of polarity, or centers of power. A multipolar system is one where states act pretty independent of each other. A bipolar system consists of two power centers, and the states gravitate to one or the other. In a unipolar system, there is one great power, a hegemon, which is able to influence all other states.
Political realism has both strengths and weaknesses. It is often a strong starting point in analyzing the cause of conflict in international relations and can provide some insight on how to prevent widespread conflict through, for example, the balance of power. However, it provides an incomplete picture of a complex international system.
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