The social evolution of international politics

Deploying an original 'Social Evolution Paradigm' (SEP) and drawing from anthropology, evolutionary biology, and international relations, this book advances a sweeping account for the systemic transformation of international politics. More specifically, the book shows how the nasty and brutish Hobbesian/offensive realism world many of us take for granted had evolved from an Eden-like paradise; how the Hobbesian world had self-transformed into a more peacefuldefensive realism world from 1648 to 1945; and how some regions of the post-1945 world have become more rule-based and peaceful. The book critically engages with all major grand theories of internationalpolitics and provides neat solutions to some of the "great debates" among the grand theories, from offensive realism to defensive realism, neoliberalism, the English School, and constructivism.

• List of Figures p. x
• List of Tables p. xi
• Part I Preparing the Ground
• Introduction: Why an Evolutionary Approach toward IR? p. 3
• 1 From Biological Evolution to Social Evolution p. 10
• Part II The Systemic Transformation of International Politics
• 2 Paradise Lost and Paradigm Gained: The Making of the Offensive Realism World p. 43
• 3 From Mearsheimer to Jervis p. 96
• 4 A More Rule-based International System Unfolding p. 110
• Part III Implications and Conclusion
• 5 International Politics as an Evolutionary System p. 151
• Conclusion p. 179
• Appendix I Evidences from Ethnographic Anthropology p. 187
• Appendix II Supplementary Tables for Chapter 2 p. 189
• Appendix III The Coming of Warfare to Secondary Systems p. 197
• Endnotes p. 201
• References p. 237
• Subject Index p. 279