John Mearsheimer in Athens: Why Realism Explains Better than Alternative Theories (Transcript)
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John Mearsheimer argues in Athens that realism isn't just one lens among many — it's the only framework that honestly explains why great powers behave the way they do.
Offensive RealismInternational Relations TheoryLiberal InternationalismStructural Realism
Theory Briefing
- Mearsheimer opens with a Madeleine Albright anecdote to show how even top officials resist realist logic in favour of feel-good liberal narratives.
- The lecture defines what a theory actually is, arguing most policymakers operate on hidden assumptions they've never examined or tested.
- His Israel Lobby work surfaces a contradiction: liberal theories can't explain why states act against their own strategic interest, but realism can.