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IDEALISM AND REALISM IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS: AN ONTOLOGICAL DEBATE

Assistant Professor of International Relations at the University of Lusíada (Portugal), where he teaches undergraduate courses in International Political Organisations and Regional Conflicts in International Relations. He is a Visiting College Research Associate at Wolfson College (Cambridge University), where he teaches seminars on International Security for Public Policy Master’s (MPhil in Public Policy). He was a Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge, Department of Politics and International Studies as well as Wolfson College, where he is a member. He received a PhD in International Relations from the Nova de Lisboa University, a Master’s in Economics from the University of Kent, Canterbury, UK, a Master’s in Business Administration through the ISCTE–IUL, and a degree in Economics from the Faculty of Economics UNL. He was an auditor of the National Defence Course at the Institute of National Defence. His research areas include Theory of International Relations, Security Studies, Regional Conflicts, Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect. His previous experience includes positions as Vice President at JP Morgan in Paris and Madrid. He was an Associate Consultant at McKinsey & Company and Senior Manager at AT Kearney in Lisbon as well as a Director in companies such as OGMA – Aeronautical Industry of Portugal, SA and IDD, SA, in the defence field, and the Daily News, SA, in the media field.

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Resumo

The debate between realism and idealism continues to mark the discipline of International Relations. On the one hand, realism argues that international politics is a struggle for power and a quest for survival, which results in a condition of permanent conflict between States without any possibility of evolution or progress. On the other hand, idealism considers it possible to build a world of peaceful coexistence, prosperity and well-being, achieved through cooperation and based on values and aspirations shared by humans. The object of this article is to analyse the debate between idealism and realism, considering it as an ontological debate and taking into account the controversy it has generated. The argument presented here is that both realism and idealism are two responses to the creation and maintenance of international order, that is, how States relate in international society; however these responses are not mutually exclusive and can coexist in constant tension with one another. An analysis of internationalist thought of two authors, Hans Morgenthau and Raymond Aron, is also presented, which relates to how they are positioned in this debate as well as International Relations as a whole.

O debate entre realismo e idealismo continua a marcar a disciplina das Relações Internacionais. Por um lado, o realismo argumenta que a política internacional é uma luta pelo poder e uma procura pela sobrevivência, de onde resulta uma circunstância de conflito permanente entre os Estados, sem qualquer possibilidade de evolução e progresso. Por outro lado, o idealismo considera que é possível construir um mundo de coexistência pacífica, de prosperidade e de bem-estar, alcançados através da cooperação fundada em elementos assentes em valores e aspirações partilhados pelos seres humanos. O objecto deste artigo é analisar o debate entre idealismo e realismo, considerando-o como um debate ontológico e tendo em consideração a polémica que tem gerado. O argumento aqui apresentado é que tanto o realismo como o idealismo constituem duas respostas em relação à criação e à manutenção da ordem internacional, isto é, à forma como os Estados se relacionam na sociedade internacional, mas que não são, nem forçosa nem mutuamente, exclusivas, podendo coexistir em constante tensão uma com a outra. Nesse contexto, apresenta-se também uma análise do pensamento internacionalista de dois autores referentes nas Relações Internacionais, Hans Morgenthau e Raymond Aron, relativamente à forma como cada um deles se posiciona neste debate.

Palavras-chave

ethicsIdealismOntologyPowerrealism

ÉticaIdealismoOntologiaPoderrealismo

Como citar este artigo

Fernandes, Vítor Ramon (2016). “Idealism and realism in international relations: an ontological debate”. JANUS.NET e-journal of International Relations, Vol. 7, Nº. 2, November 2016-April 2017. Consulted [online] on the date of last consultation, http://hdl.handle.net/11144/2781

Article received on 21 March, 2016 and accepted for publication on 19 September, 2016