Myths of Empire by Jack Snyder

Myths of Empire by Jack Snyder

Overextension is the common pitfall of empires. Why does it occur? What are the forces that cause the great powers of the industrial era to pursue aggressive foreign policies? Jack Snyder identifies recurrent myths of empire, describes the varieties of overextension to which they lead, and criticizes the traditional explanations offered by historians and political scientists.He tests three competing theories—realism, misperception, and domestic coalition politics—against five detailed case studies: early twentieth-century Germany, Japan in the interwar period, Great Britain in the Victorian era, the Soviet Union after World War II, and the United States during the Cold War. The resulting insights run counter to much that has been written about these apparently familiar instances of empire building.

Myths of Empire offers the best-developed theory to date of the domestic sources of international conflict and security policy... Snyder has taken a major step toward ending the theoretical impoverishment of the study of the domestic sources of international conflict.

* American Political Science Review *

In support of his case, Snyder draws upon recent research into the determinant of foreign policy of the leading powers since the mid-19th century.... Historians and still more international relations specialists will find much of interest in this analysis.

* Times Higher Education Supplement *

Jack L. Snyder is Robert and Ren'e Belfer Professor of International Relations, Columbia University, and author of The Ideology of the Offensive, also from Cornell, and From Voting to Violence: Democratization and Nationalist Conflict.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780801497643
ISBN 10	0801497647
Title	Myths of Empire
Author	Jack Snyder
Series	Cornell Studies In Security Affairs
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Cornell University Press
Year published	1993-03-28
Number of pages	344
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable