The Anarchical Society [Paperback]

Hedley Bull (Author), Andrew Hurrell (Foreword), Stanley Hoffman (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2002 | ISBN-10: 0231127634 | ISBN-13: 978-0231127639 | Edition: 3rd

The Anarchical Society is one of the masterworks of political science and the classic text on the nature of order in world politics. Originally published in 1977, it continues to define and shape the discipline of international relations. This edition has been updated with a new, interpretive foreword by Andrew Hurrell. Bull explores three fundamental questions: What is order in world politics? How is order maintained in the contemporary states system? What alternative paths to world order are desirable and feasible? Laws and institutions, Bull points out, shift and change over time. The Anarchical Society addresses the unwritten rules which have allowed international order to exist across the ages.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Political theorists who might be tempted to disregard Bull's insights as no longer relevant to contemporary international relations ought to reconsider their arguments in light of these perennial philosophical issues.Contemporary Political Review -- Ewan Harrison Contemporary Political Review

Review

A masterful analysis of the problem of international order in contemporary society and of the feasibility of such alternative models as disarmament, global organization, a highly proliferated world, and a radical redistribution of wealth and power.

(FOREIGN AFFAIRS )

Bull has written that rarest of books: it is not the last, but the first word on its subject.

(Political Science Quarterly )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press; 3rd edition (October 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231127634
• ISBN-13: 978-0231127639
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #109,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a good critique of the anarchical worldview, January 10, 2008

By 

Faruk Ekmekci - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Anarchical Society (Paperback)

The concept of "anarchy" has enjoyed a privileged status in each of the two main schools of thought of IR, namely neorealism and neoliberalism -albeit in varying size and nature. I have always believed that this overemphasis on anarchy was unjustified and misleading. I think what is important is not the mere presence or absence of a governmental body at the international level, but rather whether any mechanism exists that functions against Waltz's assertion that "wars occur because there is nothing that prevents them" (1959, 232). In our modern global world, no state except the hegemon can get away with a "fait accompli" that will change regional of global balances of power. This simply means that every state except one has an "impediment" to behave like a "rogue" state. Thus, the absence of a material world government to punish the deviant states does not necessarily create an anarchic international environment, because the practical function of such a government is fulfilled to a large extent by the hierarchical nature of the international system. This is true for multipolar systems where there is a balance of power among major states as well. Throughout modern history, each state that sought a global hegemony found a community of others against her. Thus, balance of power has indeed been an ordering principle in international relations.

I found my inspiration as to the "order" in the international system in the writings of some British scholars. Contrary to the central place of anarchy in the North American theories of international relations, "international society" thinking and its resultant emphasis on "order" has been a tradition in post-war Britain. "The English School" argued that there is a persistent order in the international system alongside "anarchy" and that the preservation of a minimal order has been a common objective of the major members of the international system. Hedley Bull was one of the most influential scholars within the English School. In his The Anarchical Society he defines order in international system as "a pattern or activity that sustains the elementary or primary goals of the society of states," (p. 8). In further elaboration, he lists these goals as 1) the preservation of the system and society of states itself, 2) maintaining the sovereignty of states, 3) maintaining peace, and 4) sustaining the elementary goals of the individual, i.e. life, truth, and property (pp. 16-18). He argues that the maintenance of order is a common goal of states, because -whatever the further goals of states- the existence of a minimal order is a necessary condition to achieve these higher goals. Like individuals, states value order because they value "the greater predictability of human behavior" that comes as the consequence of conformity to the elementary or primary goals of states (p. 7).
According to Bull, "balance of power" is the primary and most effective instrument for the maintenance of international order. It is primary, because it provides the conditions in which other institutions of order (diplomacy, war, international law, and great power management) have been able to operate; it is the most effective, because by preventing the emergence of a hegemon, balance of power helps preserve the existent order.
Two of the instruments that Bull argues states use to preserve international order are particularly interesting. First, Bull directs our attention to the positive functions of war with respect to the maintenance of order. While in the traditional IR literature war is associated with conflict and disorder, Bull argues that war has widely been used by states (in particular the great powers) as a means of enforcing international law and preserving balance of power (p. 102). Thus, for Bull, war is a two-faceted phenomenon: a threat to be limited in most cases, but also an instrument to be used for order-related purposes in some cases. Second, he contends that great power politics contribute to the preservation of international order as well. Bull argues that great powers do so by preserving the general balance of power, avoiding major crisis among themselves, and respecting each other's "spheres of influences" (p. 200). In that respect, the English school warns us that the great power politics is not a wholly "tragic" story.
I think The Anarchical Society made two important contributions to our understanding of international politics. First, it persuasively argued that we are not living in an international "jungle". In Bull's (and my own) view, anarchy is an element of international structure, but neither the only nor the predominant one. States purposively try to limit the negative effects of anarchy by working together to preserve a minimal level of order in order to attain higher objectives. Second, Bull helped us realize that some crucial elements of international politics -war and great power politics-, which are generally associated with conflict, many times play positive roles in terms of the preservation of international order.
An important shortcoming in Bull's approach is that Bull remains quite when it comes to the "nature" of international order. The question of what causes the emergence of different international orders is outside the scope of The Anarchical Society. Actually, Bull admits this point when he says that "we are concerned only with what may be called the `statics' of international order and not with its `dynamics'," (19). Hence, Bull does not offer us a "theory" of international relations.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Leading Mind -, September 19, 2010

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RJB - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Anarchical Society (Paperback)

Bull lays out the rules very blankly. It's a bit of a hard read, but nonetheless its work from the actual English School mind.

1 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars no problems, February 16, 2009

By 

Laura "Laura" (Phildelpihia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Anarchical Society (Paperback)

I got the book on time and it was in good condition, so I was happy.