The Great Delusion: Liberal Dreams and International Realities

In this accessible treatise, Mearsheimer, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago, outlines how U.S. foreign policy pursuing what he calls “liberal hegemony” has backfired to the point of recoil. The U.S.’s literal fight for peace, he argues, has antagonized states whose identities rest in strongman nationalism, resulting in more wars—and greater militarism and nationalism at home—to U.S. social coffers’ detriment. Pointing to the recent conflicts in the Middle East and Afghanistan as examples, Mearsheimer notes that spending billions of dollars on the latest in munitions is not an effective path to being the world’s moral arbiter. Rather, he posits that, to maintain a “unipolar” world centered on U.S. interests, American foreign policy should base its actions in “realism,” a strategy that pursues self-preservation via a balance of power between sovereign nations. A country that is internally sound, economically and democratically, will be one the world will want to emulate—and a nation strong enough to stay ahead of a rising China. The author’s prose is accessible, if not free of jargon such as “night-watchman,” a phrase he uses to denote a state that seeks to play the role of moral arbiter. Mearsheimer’s disquieting critique will appeal to diplomacy aficionados, especially those looking for wonkish contrarianism on the political status quo. [em](July) [/em]