Quotes from book
Theory of International Politics

Theory of International Politics
Kenneth N. Waltz

Theory of International Politics is a 1979 book on international relations theory by Kenneth Waltz that offers a new theory, the neorealist theory of international relations. Taking into account the influence of neoclassical economic theory, Waltz argued that the fundamental "ordering principle" of the international political system is anarchy, which is defined by the presence of "functionally undifferentiated" individual state actors lacking "relations of super- and subordination" that are distinguished only by their varying capabilities.

Kenneth N. Waltz photo

“I am not saying that such a theory cannot be constructed, but only that I cannot see how to do it in any way that might be useful. The decisive point, anyway, is that a macrotheory of international politics would lack the practical implications of macroeconomic theory. National governments can manipulate system-wide economic variables. No agencies with comparable capabilities exist internationally. Who would act on the possibilities of adjustment that a macrotheory of international politics might reveal?”

Kenneth N. Waltz book Theory of International Politics

Source: Theory of International Politics (1979), p. 110

Kenneth N. Waltz photo

“If we gather more and more data and establish more and more associations, however, we will not finally find that we know something. We will simply end up having more and more data and larger sets of correlations.”

Kenneth N. Waltz book Theory of International Politics

Source: Theory of International Politics (1979), p. 4

Kenneth N. Waltz photo

“Differences in the incidence of destruction and "death" do not account for the reluctance to refer to international politics as a harmonious realm, while competitive economies are often so described. Instead, one may say that the standards of performance now applied to international political systems are higher, or at least widely different. As John Maynard Keynes once remarked, those who believe that unhampered processes of natural selection lead to progress do not "count the cost of the struggle" (1926, p. 37). In international politics, we often count nothing but the costs of the struggle.”

Kenneth N. Waltz book Theory of International Politics

Source: Theory of International Politics (1979), p. 137

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