International Relations- Quiz 1

Front 1

Anarchy/Sovereignty

Back 1

No higher authority. In Int.Rel. this refers to states having no higher authority. States are legally equal, but not militarily

Front 2

Self-help

Back 2

Structure of anarchy. Raw-power-politics: "The strong do what they want and they weak suffer what they must"

Front 3

Unipolar

Back 3

One great power, can do whatever it wants

Front 4

Bipolar

Back 4

2 great powers, rivalries, (think Cold War). Fewer wars, but BIG when they happen

Front 5

Multipolar

Back 5

Many powers or more than two. Chaotic/uncertain, Lots of small wars

Front 6

Raison d'etat

Back 6

Reason of the state- Cardinal Richelieu- all other values, such as adherence to a religious code of conduct, were secondary in importance and, as such, were to be sacrificed when they stood in the way of promoting French national interests

Front 7

Nation

Back 7

People who perceive themselves to be members of the same group on the basis of ethic, linguistic, or cultural affinity

Front 8

State

Back 8

a sovereign entity that posses a permanent population, a well-defined territory, and a government capable of managing public affairs

Front 9

Nation-State

Back 9

Almost perfect match between a nation and a state (28% of current nation-states)

Front 10

Tragedy of the commons

Back 10

If everyone acts in their own self-interest, no one wins

Front 11

Selective Perception

Back 11

You see things only as you want to or can possibly see it. National decision-makers perceive international events as influenced by their belief system

Front 12

Cognitive Dissonance

Back 12

holding onto a set of beliefs. Bending what you know to be true to fit the status quo.

Front 13

Mirror Images

Back 13

Both sides suspect the other of doing the same things they are afraid of. Ex. Cold War and the Soviet view of the U.S. and the American View of the Soviets

Front 14

Realism and Power Politics

Back 14

ceaseless repetitive struggle for power due to the states having no higher authority to report to. You help yourself in whatever way possible

Hint 14

Key Principles:
1. Politics governed by human nature (inherently conflictual and imperfect)
2. Self-help is necessary in international politics
3. Leaders must follow national interest
4. Trust your own power
5. If you want peace, prepare for war

Front 15

Thucydides

Back 15

Original realist. Talked about Melos. "In world politics, the strong do as they will and the weak suffer as they must"

Front 16

Cardinal Richlieu

Back 16

Raison d'etat. Aligned Catholic France with Protestant powers during the Thirty Year's war against the Catholic Hapsburgs

Front 17

Machiavelli

Back 17

Realist. The Prince. How to gain power and hold onto it. You want to loose your power? Play fair. Want to keep it? Lie, cheat, tell people they have the power when really you are in control

Front 18

"Lessons" of history

Back 18

Looking back at the most recent and relevant senerio and saying "oh! Look what we learned! These are the lessons of history! We won't be making that mistake again"

Front 19

Prisoner's Dilemma

Back 19

Think of a game of 4-square

Front 20

Zero-sum game

Back 20

One side wins, the other side looses. Realist point of view

Front 21

National interest

Back 21

Nation before anything anything ANYTHING else. In realism, leaders must follow this

Front 22

Relative gains

Back 22

Realism. measure of how much one side in an agreement benefits in comparison with the other's side

Front 23

Liberalism

Back 23

Optimistic view of human nature; Internal characteristics of states important; democracies are important; international institutions and international trade

Front 24

Absolute gains

Back 24

Liberalism. Cooperating to advance mutual interests. International institutions provide a way to make this possible by reducing the odds of people backing out of their promises.

Front 25

Democratic peace theory

Back 25

Immanuel Kant- democracies are peaceful. If you let people vote on war, they most likely won't want to go. Democracies offer courts, not duals. Countries that are similar to each other don't fight with each other. More democracy= less wars

Front 26

Rational Choice

Back 26

decision making procedures guided by careful definition of problems, specification of goals, weighing the costs, risks, and benefits of all alternatives, and selection of the optimal alternative

Front 27

Dente

Back 27

a strategy of relaxing tensions between adversaries to reduce the possibility of war. Ex. end of Cold War

Front 28

Peaceful Coexistence

Back 28

Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev's 1956 doctrine that war between capitalist and communist states is not inevitable and that inter bloc competition could be peaceful. Didn't quite work

Front 29

Levels of Analysis

Back 29

Foreign Policy influences---> Global influences---> State influences----> Individual influences

Front 30

Self-determination

Back 30

Break up empires

Front 31

Polarized Alliances

Back 31

the degree to which states cluster in alliances around the most powerful members of the state system

Front 32

Limitationism

Back 32

against the containment theory. U.S. can't afford to go into other countries. We can't over-extend ourselves. We should limit ourselves only to certain regions where we can have heavy influence. In the short run, we will align ourselves with dictators and some people who maybe will look good at first, but eventually we will make more enemies and it will be not so good.

Front 33

Containment

Back 33

a stratefy to prevent another state from using force to expand its sphere of influence

Front 34

Domino theory

Back 34

a metaphor popular during the Cold War which predicted that if one state fell to communism, its neighbors would also fall in a chain reaction, like a row of falling dominoes

Front 35

Isolationism

Back 35

a policy of withdrawing form active participation with other actors in world affairs and instead concentrating state efforts on managing internal affairs

Front 36

Appeasement

Back 36

a strategy of making concessions to another state in the hope that, satisfied, it will not make additional claims

Front 37

Long-cycle theory

Back 37

a theory that focuses on the rise and fall of the leading global power as the central political process of the modern world system

Front 38

Hegemon

Back 38

a single, overwhelmingly powerful state that exercises predominate influence over the global system

Front 39

Power-transition Theory

Back 39

as a new power gets closer to the equivalence of the established power, things get dangerous. Either the new power wants to challenge the old power or the old power wants to keep the status quo

Front 40

Liberationism and Roll Back

Back 40

Can't win by playing defense. Truman is playing to tie, not to win. We shuold be kicking the Soviets out of the countries they already control, not defending ones they haven't yet. Big talkers out of power, cautious in power. Ex. McCarthy

Front 41

Imperial Overstretch

Back 41

stretching your powers too thin and not being able to control it all.

Front 42

Thirty Year's War

Back 42

Gave us the nation-state. Gave us ideas on how/what they do and behave

Front 43

Peace of Westphalia

Back 43

Rights of States: self defense, independence, free agent in negotiating alliances, trade agreements, etc, legal equality, duties of states: non-intervention and honor agreements

Front 44

Wars of German Unificiation

Back 44

1. Prussia + Austria vs Denmark
2. Prussia vs Austria
3. Prussia vs France

Front 45

Otto Van Bismarck

Back 45

"If you want to accomplish things in the world, they cannot be attained by giving speeches". Blood and iron. Leads the 3 wars of German Unification

Front 46

Schleswig and Holstein

Back 46

Denmark controlled German-speaking states. Bismarck goes to Austria saying "hey, let's team up and get these back. I'll take the Schleswig (higher) and you take Holstein (sandwiched in between)

Front 47

Alsace and Loraine

Back 47

Germany/France conflict region. Napoleonic Wars belonged to France. During the Wars of German Unification Germany took them back in their "harsh peace". During WWI France attacks through this region and Germany fails in their attack.

Front 48

WWI lessons

Back 48

1. Technology has made the defense dominant
2. The future will experience wars of position, not wars of movement
3. These conflicts will be protracted wars of attrition
4. Avoid crisis escalation, negotiate rather than strike first

Front 49

Treaty of Versailles

Back 49

1. Weaken Germany (decrease in size, arms reductions)
2. Strengthen Britain and France (reparations, regime change in Germany
3. Liberal idealism (league of nations, self-determination (break up empires)

Front 50

Dilantin

Back 50

Phenytoin
control certain type of seizures, and to treat and prevent seizures that may ... after surgery to the brain or nervous system. Phenytoin is in a class of medications called anticonvulsants

Front 51

Polarized Alliances

Back 51

the degree to which states cluster in alliances around the most powerful members of the state system

Front 52

Limitationism

Back 52

against the containment theory. U.S. can't afford to go into other countries. We can't over-extend ourselves. We should limit ourselves only to certain regions where we can have heavy influence. In the short run, we will align ourselves with dictators and some people who maybe will look good at first, but eventually we will make more enemies and it will be not so good.

Front 53

Containment

Back 53

a stratefy to prevent another state from using force to expand its sphere of influence

Front 54

Domino theory

Back 54

a metaphor popular during the Cold War which predicted that if one state fell to communism, its neighbors would also fall in a chain reaction, like a row of falling dominoes

Front 55

Isolationism

Back 55

a policy of withdrawing form active participation with other actors in world affairs and instead concentrating state efforts on managing internal affairs

Front 56

Appeasement

Back 56

a strategy of making concessions to another state in the hope that, satisfied, it will not make additional claims

Front 57

Long-cycle theory

Back 57

a theory that focuses on the rise and fall of the leading global power as the central political process of the modern world system

Front 58

Hegemon

Back 58

a single, overwhelmingly powerful state that exercises predominate influence over the global system

Front 59

Power-transition Theory

Back 59

as a new power gets closer to the equivalence of the established power, things get dangerous. Either the new power wants to challenge the old power or the old power wants to keep the status quo

Front 60

Liberationism and Roll Back

Back 60

Can't win by playing defense. Truman is playing to tie, not to win. We shuold be kicking the Soviets out of the countries they already control, not defending ones they haven't yet. Big talkers out of power, cautious in power. Ex. McCarthy