Machiavellian Temptations: Methodological Warning

Abstract

Wight drafted this note in a further effort to elucidate key points about his analysis of the three main traditions of thinking about international relations in Western societies since the sixteenth century (Realism, Rationalism, and Revolutionism). First, he acknowledged that there have been causative factors other than ideas, such as pursuing power and status, meeting security requirements, and serving economic interests. The historical record suggests, however, that the philosophical views of influential decision-makers in the face of perceived necessity have coloured their policies and actions. Second, the argument that new technologies such as nuclear weapons and space rockets have made traditional themes of political philosophy obsolete is a ‘dehumanizing’ proposition; it overlooks the fact that human beings have devised these new capabilities and applied them to the pursuit of human priorities. Third, there may be a ‘preselected’ relevance of the three traditions: Kantian ideals may be most suited to private and personal affairs; Grotian philosophical principles may be most useful in the domestic politics of constitutional states; and Machiavellian approaches may be required in international politics.