Power in international relations

Power, as defined in its simplest form is universally conceived as the ability one has to persuade or force another to carry out an act which they otherwise would not do. The concept of power is a central theme to the study of International Relations, as there exist many forms and categories of it making it open to contestation and thus difficult to define. In particular, large entities and state power is the discourse in indicating social, political, economic, and military power. The many existential theories within the study of international relations all put a great deal of emphasis on the concept of power, yet describe its significance with various interpretations and much ambiguity. Analyzing these interpretations of power offered in Power and International Relations by David A. Baldwin and than providing an alternative definition of power, predominantly in relation to realism that triumphs, will be the aim of this paper. According to Robert A. Dahl, the power of individual states can be consequently conceptualized…

As sad as it is to admit, power really is one of the most important factor in international relations. Time has changed and we’ve seen wars of all sizes but there has only been little change in terms of how international relations work. Today’s international relations is slightly different than it was during the Ancient Greek because along with power or military might, money or economic capacity also plays a central role in diplomacy. And this is simply because money doesn’t incite as bloody…

control of it. In 1977 it was officially transferred to Panama. Hans Morgenthau describes international politics as a struggle…

periphery than to invest domestically. Even though profits flowed into the powerful state, investors typically didn’t account for the “availability of skilled workers, inadequate infrastructure and political instability” of the less developed regions they were investing in. So even though Lenin claimed that super profits existed in the periphery, “the actual experience of his investors [did] not support his view.” The socialist theory of capitalism clearly fails to account for certain…

They also explored the question which regarded mental safety simulation. Is it simply just imagining physical protection that has power to intervene in social responses? In this method, fifty-four community members were assigned to a simulation that was either flying, invulnerable to injury, or impervious to pain. The three different simulations were how they manipulated the experiment. Next, the participants had to explain a time they had been or felt socially excluded. Then, depending on what…

The ring of Gyges grants the ability to become invisible by only “turn[ing] the collet of the ring.” This, for Gyges, gave him power and confidence to conquer the kingdom. I’ve often thought about this situation but a different light. The question If you could have any superpower what would it be? My selection has always been to have the ability to be invisible, but not for the reason that Gyges would want. I feel like it would be satisfying to dip in and out of sight, avoid interactions and…

Several people voted on an online poll/debate website and 62% of American users say that the United States shouldn’t help other countries, the strongest of arguments being that the U.S. economy isn’t completely together itself, and this needs to be fixed before focusing on other problems (BizzyPlayer18, date comments were listed is unknown). While this is a strong argument, a point must be brought to mind: the United States has much more built together economy than many. Addressing these…

Judith Butler discusses aspects of this power dynamic usually present between men and women in her book. Particularly, Butler analyzes the effect sexuality can have in influencing power: The pro-sexuality movement within feminist theory and practice has effectively argued that sexuality is always constructed within the terms of discourse and power, where power is partially understood in terms of heterosexual and phallic cultural conventions [...] If sexuality is culturally constructed within…

Hesiod and Sophocles discuss how the youth threaten elders and their positions of power. The role of the son in their works shines light onto how rulers in their quest to retain power can be threatened even by those who support them. This fear causes the father to push their son away thus fulfilling their fears as the sons’ future actions lead to a destabilization in the political order. This destabilization is show to be a loss of political power as the son either supplants their role or…

Both Philip Fithian and Goerge Washington record and immortalize the life of late 18th century white Virginian gentry in their diaries. In vastly different styles, both men describe the culture, values, power structures, methods of mastery, and relationships between men and women in colonial Virginia. As an outsider to this society, Philip Fithian creates a more complete and colorful picture than George Washington does. While Fithian’s account offers explicit observations about Virginian gentry,…