Conflict After the Cold War: Arguments on Causes of War and Peace, 3rd Edition

by Richard K. Betts

Edited by one of the most renowned scholars in the field, Richard Betts’ Conflict After the Cold War assembles classic and contemporary readings that argue about the shape of international conflict in this post-Cold War and post-9/11 era. Contextualized within a broader philosophical and historical context, the carefully chosen and excerpted selections in this popular reader introduce students to the core debates about the causes and the future of war and peace. Through the precision of its approach and attention to new issues, this reader challenges conventional wisdom and encourages more critical examination of the political, economic, social, and military factors that underlie political violence.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, Political Science, College

672 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1993

Reviews

[Charlotte]

I read this for class and I don't think I read them all but I don't care and i'm saying I have finished

[Max]

Only read a little over a third- of the essays, but a valuable resource. Listing here for remembrence. I had the 2nd Edition from 2005, noting that the list of included works changes with each edition.

[J.R.]

Very informative. I appreciated that each chapter starts with Betts analysis of the various IR schools of thought, but then he provides excerpts of source documents within each school. I always enjoy reading the actual source works and not just some guys interpretation of those works.

[Nikki]

I read every single page of this 666 page book (fifth edition) so therefore it COUNTS FOR THE GOODREADS

[Aline Kho]

3.5 𖤐

[Jens]

Read the 3rd edition of this for a "Global Conflict, Global Health" class. Post Cold War international relations theory is intense. Betts puts together a collection of works by all the essential theorists like Fukuyama, Mearsheimer, Huntington, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Wilson, and some other big names. It's really helping me round out my views on power, realism, idealism, sovereignty, and the role of liberal democratic society in the world. Fortunately for the reader, the reader can make some basic judgments on how accurate the claims many of these theorists make actually are as a good portion of the articles come from Cold-War era publications, or even from works published at the dawn of liberal democracy. Very, very dense text though.

[Mick]

An excellent reader on the nature and causes of modern conflict, compiling essays reflecting all the major schools of thought on the subject. I have found this indispensable as a textbook in international relations.

[Harrison]

An excellent book for those interested in conflict theory and IR