Theories of War and Peace

by Brown, Michael E.; Cote, Owen R.; Lynn-Jones, Sean M.; Miller, Steven E.

• ISBN13: 9780262522526
• ISBN10: 0262522527
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-09-15
• Publisher: The MIT Press

Summary

What causes war? How can wars be prevented? Scholars and policymakers have sought the answers to these questions for centuries. Although wars continue to occur, recent scholarship has made progress toward developing more sophisticated and perhaps more useful theories on the causes and prevention of war. This volume includes essays by leading scholars on contemporary approaches to understanding war and peace. The essays include expositions, analyses, and critiques of some of the more prominent and enduring explanations of war. Several authors discuss realist theories of war, which focus on the distribution of power and the potential for offensive war. Others examine the prominent hypothesis that the spread of democracy will usher in an era of peace. In light of the apparent increase in nationalism and ethnic conflict, several authors present hypotheses on how nationalism causes war and how such wars can be controlled. Contributors also engage in a vigorous debate on whether international institutions can promote peace. In a section on war and peace in the changing international system, several authors consider whether rising levels of international economic independence and environmental scarcity will influence the likelihood of war.

Author Biography

Michael E. Brown is Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University.

Owen Coté is Associate Director of the MIT Security Studies Program and Editor of the journal International Security.

Sean M. Lynn-Jones is Editor of International Security, the International Security Program's quarterly journal. He is also series editor of the Belfer Center Studies in International Security, the Program's book series that is published by MIT Press.

Steven E. Miller is director of the International Security Program at the Belfer Center.

Table of Contents

The Contributors	vii	(2)
Acknowledgments	ix	(2)
Preface	xi
Sean M. Lynn-Jones
PART I: REALIST THEORIES OF WAR AND PEACE	3	(134)
Back to the Future: Instability in Europe after the Cold War	3	(52)
John J. Mearsheimer
Offense, Defense, and the Causes of War	55	(39)
Stephen Van Evera
Realists as Optimists: Cooperation as Self-Help	94	(43)
Charles L. Glaser
PART II: DEMOCRACY AND WAR	137	(120)
How Liberalism Produces Democratic Peace	137	(39)
John M. Owen
Kant or Cant: The Myth of the Democratic Peace	176	(45)
Christopher Layne
Democratization and the Danger of War	221	(36)
Edward D. Mansfield
Jack Snyder
PART III: NATIONALISM, ETHNICITY, AND WAR	257	(72)
Hypotheses on Nationalism and War	257	(35)
Stephen Van Evera
Containing Fear: The Origins and Management of Ethnic Conflict	292	(37)
David A. Lake
Donald Rothchild
PART IV: INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, WAR, AND PEACE	329	(112)
The False Promise of International Institutions	329	(55)
John J. Mearsheimer
The Promise of Institutionalist Theory	384	(13)
Robert O. Keohane
Lisa L. Martin
The Promise of Collective Security	397	(10)
Charles A. Kupchan
Clifford A. Kupchan
The False Premise of Realism	407	(9)
John Gerard Ruggie
Constructing International Politics	416	(11)
Alexander Wendt
A Realist Reply	427	(14)
John J. Mearsheimer
PART V: WAR AND PEACE IN A CHANGING INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM	441
Is War Obsolete? A Review Essay	441	(23)
Carl Kaysen
Economic Interdependence and War: A Theory of Trade Expectations	464	(37)
Dale C. Copeland
Environmental Scarcities and Violent Conflict: Evidence from Cases	501	(36)
Thomas F. Homer-Dixon
The Utility of Force in a World of Scarcity	537
John Orme