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Realpolitik
Realpolitik (/reɪˈɑːlpɒlɪˌtiːk/ ray-AHL-po-lih-teek German: [ʁeˈaːlpoliˌtiːk] ⓘ; from German real 'realistic, practical, actual' and Politik 'politics') is the approach of conducting diplomatic or political policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors, rather than strictly following ideological, moral, or ethical premises. In this respect, it shares aspects of its philosophical approach with those of realism and pragmatism.
While generally used as a positive or neutral term, Realpolitik has been used pejoratively to imply policies that are perceived as being coercive, amoral, or Machiavellian. Prominent proponents of Realpolitik include Otto von Bismarck, Henry Kissinger, George H. W. Bush, George F. Kennan, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Deng Xiaoping, Charles de Gaulle, and Lee Kuan Yew. The opposite of Realpolitik is Idealpolitik.
The term Realpolitik was coined by Ludwig von Rochau, a German writer and politician in the 19th century. His 1853 book Grundsätze der Realpolitik angewendet auf die staatlichen Zustände Deutschlands ("Principles of Realpolitik applied to the national state of affairs of Germany") describes the meaning of the term:
The study of the forces that shape, maintain and alter the state is the basis of all political insight and leads to the understanding that the law of power governs the world of states just as the law of gravity governs the physical world. The older political science was fully aware of this truth but drew a wrong and detrimental conclusion—the right of the more powerful. The modern era has corrected this unethical fallacy, but while breaking with the alleged right of the more powerful one, the modern era was too much inclined to overlook the real might of the more powerful and the inevitability of its political influence.
Historian John Bew suggests that much of what stands for modern Realpolitik today deviates from the original meaning of the term. Realpolitik emerged in mid-19th century Europe from the collision of the Enlightenment with state formation and power politics. The concept, Bew argues, was an early attempt at answering the conundrum of how to achieve liberal enlightened goals in a world that does not follow liberal enlightened rules.
Rochau coined the term in 1853 and added a second volume in 1869 that further refined his earlier arguments. Rochau, exiled in Paris until the 1848 uprising, returned during the revolution and became a well-known figure in the National Liberal Party. As the liberal gains of the 1848 revolutions fell victim to coercive governments or were swallowed by powerful social forces such as class, religion and nationalism, Rochau—according to Bew—began to think hard about how the work that had begun with such enthusiasm had failed to yield any lasting results.
He said that the great achievement of the Enlightenment had been to show that might is not necessarily right. The mistake liberals made was to assume that the law of the strong had suddenly evaporated simply because it had been shown to be unjust. Rochau wrote that "to bring down the walls of Jericho, the Realpolitiker knows the simple pickaxe is more useful than the mightiest trumpet". Rochau's concept was seized upon by German thinkers in the mid and late 19th century and became associated with Otto von Bismarck's statecraft in unifying Germany in the mid 19th century. By 1890, usage of the word Realpolitik was widespread, yet increasingly detached from its original meaning.
Even prior to the contemporary Realpolitik term, China has had a "realistic" tradition in its governance dating back thousands of years. Often referred to as Chinese Legalism, the spirit of its content may be most readily recognised by Western viewers through one of its kindred, The Art of War. Chinese administrative organisation significantly influenced other Asian nations as well as Western administrative practices not later than the 12th century, playing a significant role in the development of the modern state, including the usage of examinations for entry to the civil service.
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Realpolitik
Realpolitik (/reɪˈɑːlpɒlɪˌtiːk/ ray-AHL-po-lih-teek German: [ʁeˈaːlpoliˌtiːk] ⓘ; from German real 'realistic, practical, actual' and Politik 'politics') is the approach of conducting diplomatic or political policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors, rather than strictly following ideological, moral, or ethical premises. In this respect, it shares aspects of its philosophical approach with those of realism and pragmatism.
While generally used as a positive or neutral term, Realpolitik has been used pejoratively to imply policies that are perceived as being coercive, amoral, or Machiavellian. Prominent proponents of Realpolitik include Otto von Bismarck, Henry Kissinger, George H. W. Bush, George F. Kennan, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Deng Xiaoping, Charles de Gaulle, and Lee Kuan Yew. The opposite of Realpolitik is Idealpolitik.
The term Realpolitik was coined by Ludwig von Rochau, a German writer and politician in the 19th century. His 1853 book Grundsätze der Realpolitik angewendet auf die staatlichen Zustände Deutschlands ("Principles of Realpolitik applied to the national state of affairs of Germany") describes the meaning of the term:
The study of the forces that shape, maintain and alter the state is the basis of all political insight and leads to the understanding that the law of power governs the world of states just as the law of gravity governs the physical world. The older political science was fully aware of this truth but drew a wrong and detrimental conclusion—the right of the more powerful. The modern era has corrected this unethical fallacy, but while breaking with the alleged right of the more powerful one, the modern era was too much inclined to overlook the real might of the more powerful and the inevitability of its political influence.
Historian John Bew suggests that much of what stands for modern Realpolitik today deviates from the original meaning of the term. Realpolitik emerged in mid-19th century Europe from the collision of the Enlightenment with state formation and power politics. The concept, Bew argues, was an early attempt at answering the conundrum of how to achieve liberal enlightened goals in a world that does not follow liberal enlightened rules.
Rochau coined the term in 1853 and added a second volume in 1869 that further refined his earlier arguments. Rochau, exiled in Paris until the 1848 uprising, returned during the revolution and became a well-known figure in the National Liberal Party. As the liberal gains of the 1848 revolutions fell victim to coercive governments or were swallowed by powerful social forces such as class, religion and nationalism, Rochau—according to Bew—began to think hard about how the work that had begun with such enthusiasm had failed to yield any lasting results.
He said that the great achievement of the Enlightenment had been to show that might is not necessarily right. The mistake liberals made was to assume that the law of the strong had suddenly evaporated simply because it had been shown to be unjust. Rochau wrote that "to bring down the walls of Jericho, the Realpolitiker knows the simple pickaxe is more useful than the mightiest trumpet". Rochau's concept was seized upon by German thinkers in the mid and late 19th century and became associated with Otto von Bismarck's statecraft in unifying Germany in the mid 19th century. By 1890, usage of the word Realpolitik was widespread, yet increasingly detached from its original meaning.
Even prior to the contemporary Realpolitik term, China has had a "realistic" tradition in its governance dating back thousands of years. Often referred to as Chinese Legalism, the spirit of its content may be most readily recognised by Western viewers through one of its kindred, The Art of War. Chinese administrative organisation significantly influenced other Asian nations as well as Western administrative practices not later than the 12th century, playing a significant role in the development of the modern state, including the usage of examinations for entry to the civil service.