Martin Wight, the Whigs and Western Values in International Relations
Author(s)
Hall, Ian
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2014
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Martin Wight is often regarded as a disengaged historian of international thought who avoided commentary on contemporary events and shunned opportunities to contribute to discussion over policy. This article argues that this interpretation is mistaken. It argues instead that Wight was deeply concerned with the practice of international relations, as well as the theory, and sought repeatedly to find and use different means to influence British foreign policy and world politics more generally. To that end, it concentrates on one particular effort: Wight's attempt to construct a set of Whig or Western values that he believed ...
View more >Martin Wight is often regarded as a disengaged historian of international thought who avoided commentary on contemporary events and shunned opportunities to contribute to discussion over policy. This article argues that this interpretation is mistaken. It argues instead that Wight was deeply concerned with the practice of international relations, as well as the theory, and sought repeatedly to find and use different means to influence British foreign policy and world politics more generally. To that end, it concentrates on one particular effort: Wight's attempt to construct a set of Whig or Western values that he believed should guide the conduct of practitioners.
View less >
View more >Martin Wight is often regarded as a disengaged historian of international thought who avoided commentary on contemporary events and shunned opportunities to contribute to discussion over policy. This article argues that this interpretation is mistaken. It argues instead that Wight was deeply concerned with the practice of international relations, as well as the theory, and sought repeatedly to find and use different means to influence British foreign policy and world politics more generally. To that end, it concentrates on one particular effort: Wight's attempt to construct a set of Whig or Western values that he believed should guide the conduct of practitioners.
View less >
Journal Title
International History Review
Volume
36
Issue
5
Subject
International Relations
Political Science
Historical Studies