The Principal Alternative to Mainstream North American Theorizations of International Relations (IR) Is the English School

Thesis Statement

“The English school of international relations can be conceived as a society without government. It can be deducted from the main institutions that regulate international relations: the war, the great powers, the diplomacy, the balance of power and especially the mutual recognition by Member States of their sovereignty.”

Discussion and Analysis

My observations reveal that the English School focuses on the critical study of inequalities in the international system and integrates in the field of international relations factors such as social class. They also question the notion of state. For the Liberals, international relations are seen as a factor of progress and change. At international and national level, the Liberals emphasize the notion of power against powerless. They emphasize the role of public opinion, law and international institutions which limit the power of states. Nowadays, we face the forces of global capitalism which undermine the apparent "victory" of liberal democracy at the end of the Cold War. Among the major current liberal authors, Joseph Nye emphasizes the concept of soft power. The English school takes its roots in the early nineteenth century with authors such as Graham Wallas, Alfred Zimmern. His approach is not positivist but rational and normative (Watson, pp. 10).

Furthermore, I believe that English School examines various theoretical currents that shape the field of international relations and their theoretical implications such as their basic assumptions and thereby their relevance. Realism, liberalism is the most popular, with Marxism and constructivism.

Realism is one of the theoretical perspectives in the study of international relations. Modern realism developed after World War II. The main assumptions of classical realism are: the primacy of the state as an entity in international relations, limited or no role of morality in ...