Force and Statecraft: Diplomatic Problems of Our Time - Softcover

Craig, Gordon A.; George, Alexander L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195057309 ISBN 13: 9780195057300

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1990

Synopsis

A leading historian of international affairs and a distinguished political scientist bring the rich experience of the past to bear upon the perplexities that confront today's statesman. They survey the evolution of the international system from the emergence of the modern state in the seventeenth century to the present, paying particular attention to the nineteenth century's balance-of-power system, principles of which still determine many of the usages of modern diplomacy. The author show, however, that this classical system has been profoundly altered by a twentieth-century diplomatic revolution: a complex of political, economic, military, and ideological factors that has destroyed the homogeneity of the international community and confronted diplomats with new problems and the need to find new expedients to deal with them. The effects of this revolution on the abortive experiment in system-making between the two world wars are described in detail, and the authors show how the modalities of the Cold War and the principles of the Nixon-Kissinger détente strategy were attempts to overcome them. The revised Second Edition includes an entirely new chapter on U.S.-Soviet cooperation and expanded coverage of the Reagan years, as well as a new analysis of the current international system.

About this title

About the Author

Gordon A. Craig and Alexander L. George are both at Stanford University.

Review

"This is an outstanding historical and policy analysis. The third edition is a valuable addition to post-cold war analysis."--Stephen Brown, Webster University

"As with previous editions, Force and Statecraft does an excellent job of introducing the beginner to the evolution of the modern state system, while challenging him to think through the complexity of developing a policy-relevant theory. This new edition is really up-to-date, with an excellent, concise section on ethics and policy."--John H. Jenke, Tufts University

"A worthy succesor to the second edition, a sound and provocative book!"--James Haw, Indiana University

"Better than the original! History and theoretical issues are combined into a single short and readable volume."--Daniel McIntosh, Slippery Rock University

"This is relevant history at its best: lucid without being oversimplified, concerned with contemporary issues without being trendy. Now more than ever we need what these two distinguished scholars have given us--the melding of an understanding of historical trends with a penetrating analysis of enduring problems of diplomacy."--Robert Jervis, Columbia University

"As did the earlier editions, so this re-writing of Force and Statecraft offers an important effort to apply profound historical knowledge to the wise conduct of foreign affairs in a world, where it is recognized, war and violence may always remain a recourse." --Charles Maier, Harvard University

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0195057309
• ISBN 13: 9780195057300
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 336