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The evolution of security

18 Aug 2006

The driving force behind the security dilemma has alternately been described as the anarchical nature of the international system and the aggressive and competitive nature of human beings themselves. [...] The first extensive use of evolutionary science to substantiate the classical realist view of human nature emerged only recently, with the invocation of the scientific branches of sociobiology and evolutionary psychology. [...] The arguments of the so-labelled classical realists remain some of the defining concepts in IR and still shape the general orientation of scholarly study in the field. [...] Niebuhr says, no possibility of drawing a sharp line between the will to power and the will to live.”6 Arguing that states are power-hungry entities and cannot be seen as morally responsible to each other, Carr draws on Hobbes’ conception of the Leviathan of the state as an Artificial Man, and also on thinkers like Machiavelli and Hegel.7 The Hobbesian social contract, the argument goes, redirects [...] Yet the legacy of the classical realist conception of an egoistic and aggressive humanity is still reflected in many ways in contemporary international relations.14 A competitive and individualistic view of human nature still seems to underlie arguments about international politics, informing the key concept of the security dilemma.
environment security politics science and technology aggression biology culture epistemology ethics evolution genetics international relations national security philosophy social sciences nature cognition charles darwin natural science cognitive science security, international natural selection egoism darwinism sociobiological sociobiology e. o. wilson edward o. wilson evolutionary science social darwinism

Authors

Busser, Mark

Pages
27
Published in
Canada

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