The Twenty Years' Crisis(Edward Hallett Carr)

影音王 · 发表于 2009-6-1 16:17:36

Synopsis
E.H. Carr’s "Twenty Years’ Crisis" is a classic work in international relations. Published in 1939, on the eve of World War II, it was immediately recognized by friend and foe alike as a defining work in the fledgling discipline. The author was one of the most influential and controversial intellectuals of the 20th century. The issues and themes he develops in this book continue to have relevance to modern day concerns with power and its distribution in the international system. Michael Cox’s critical introduction provides the reader with background information about the author, the context for the book, its main themes and contemporary relevance. Written with the student in mind, it offers a guide to understanding a complex, but crucial text

The Twenty Years’ Crisis,
Reviewer: A reader from Andover, Hampshire United Kingdom
This book can be summed up in one word, "elegent". The argument put forward by Carr is as important today as it was in 1939. He mercilessly cuts through Inter-war Idealism and lays its many flaws open for the reader to see. Carr then moves on to put forward his theory of International Relations which ultimately evolved into the Realist school of thought (which arguably is still to this day the most important school of thought in International Relations).

If this was all Carr did then his book would be a masterpiece. However he does more and in my opinion achieves more than any other theorist from the realist school of thought. Although he criticises Inter-war Idealism he is still wise enough to accept that it does have important ideals that we should strive for in International Relations. Therefore The Twenty Years Crisis can in some ways be seen as a bridgeing book that takes the best aspects from Inter-war Idealism and joins them to his Realist theory. This is why I believe the book can be described as elegent and why any serious student of International Relations should read this book.