Overview
- Translates these three works by Bernstein into English in full for the first time
- Offers a direct focus on Bernstein as an important social and political theorist in his own right
- Illuminates Bernstein's unique ethical socialist perspective on international political issues
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About this book
This book presents three later works by the German social-democratic thinker and politician Eduard Bernstein, translated into English in full for the first time: Social Democracy and International Politics: Social Democracy and the European Question; League of Nations or League of States; and International Law and International Politics: The Nature, Questions, and Future of International Law. Written at the height of WW1, they address the abrupt collapse of international socialist cooperation after its outbreak, and outline a vision for peace in Europe and beyond. Bernstein argues for an ethical, democratic approach to international relations, governed by a corpus of international law, and safeguarded by an international union dedicated to preserving peoples’ right to self-determination. He is sceptical of the state-centrism of early-20th-century liberal proposals for developing strong international institutions, while also deeply critical of militarist and imperialist political leaders and thinkers for preventing even these limited proposals from being realised. Instead, in these works, Bernstein urges social democrats to campaign for a system of international economic, legal, and cultural relations that he calls the ‘republic of peoples’, and he explores themes of patriotism, class struggle, diplomacy, and free trade that still carry resonance today.
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Keywords
- Bernstein's Social Democracy and International Politics
- Bernstein's League of Nations or League of States
- Bernstein's International Law and International Politics
- political theory of Eduard Berstein
- Bernstein and social democracy
- Bernstein and international politics
- international socialist cooperation
- 20th century political thought
- 20th century liberalism
- democracy and international relations
- international law
- Bernstein and self-determination
- critique of state-centrism
- post-WW1 political thought
- neo-realism
- neo-liberalism
- legal theory
- intellectual history
- League of Nations
- ethical diplomacy
Table of contents (27 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Part I
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Front Matter
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League of Peoples or League of States: An Investigation
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Front Matter
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Part III
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Front Matter
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Reviews
“Eduard Bernstein spent his life trying to plot a path forwards for a Europe forever teetering on the brink of conflict. Marius Ostrowski’s fabulous collection of Bernstein’s most profound works now enables an entirely new generation to learn from his insights, as thinkers and activists again struggle to combine allegiance to principled commitments with the unsettling realities of dark and troubled times.” (Professor Marc Stears, Macquarie University, Australia)
“This valuable and fluent translation of Bernstein’s wartime writings admirably illustrates the intermeshing of his thought as social-democratic theorist and as astute commentator on the period. Marius Ostrowski accompanies it with an accomplished scholarly introduction and annotations that illuminate and contextualize the ideas of this leading 20th-century thinker.” (Emeritus Professor Michael Freeden, Mansfield College, University of Oxford, UK)
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Marius S. Ostrowski is Examination Fellow in Politics at All Souls College, University of Oxford, UK.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Eduard Bernstein on Social Democracy and International Politics
Book Subtitle: Essays and Other Writings
Authors: Marius S. Ostrowski
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70781-5
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-70780-8Published: 24 May 2018
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-09992-3Published: 02 February 2019
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-70781-5Published: 04 May 2018
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: VII, 442
Topics: Political Theory, Political History, International Relations Theory, European Politics, Intellectual Studies