Prichard, Alex (2007) Justice, order and anarchy: the international political theory of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809— 1865). Millennium: journal of international studies, 35 (3). pp. 623-645. ISSN 0305-8298
Abstract
Despite penning nearly 2000 pages on international politics, the works of the anarchist Pierre-Joseph Proudhon simply do not feature in either the historiography or the study of contemporary IR theory. I argue that this is unjustified by illustrating his compelling and enduring insights into the history and nature of `the international'. Proudhon employed a sociological and psychological theory of justice; he saw war and conflict as the motors of change in society; and he saw order as emergent from the deep anarchy of (global) society. The paper provides a contextualised reading of his works to illustrate its historical importance, and demonstrates its potential to contribute to current IR theory through a comparison with contemporary Critical Theory. `As man seeks justice in equality, so society seeks order in anarchy.' `Man's belligerent nature is all that saves him from despotism.'
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Official URL: | http://mil.sagepub.com/ |
| Additional Information: | © 2007 Millennium: Journal of International Studies, |
| Library of Congress subject classification: | H Social Sciences > HX Socialism. Communism. Anarchism J Political Science > JC Political theory J Political Science > JZ International relations |
| Sets: | Departments > International Relations |
| Rights: | http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/rights/LSERO.htm |
| URL: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/36798/ |
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