International Anarchy Revisited: A Critique on Waltz’s Interpretation of Rousseau

Abstract

Kenneth Waltz is a celebrated scholar of International Relations whose works have become the foundation of the neorealist camp of International Relations. One of his most prominent theses is on the existence of international anarchy, which Waltz calls “the third image,” which creates a perpetual state of war in the interstate relations. This essay does not examine whether his thesis is valid, but instead tries to problematize the use of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s texts as the foundation in creating the perspective of the third image. This paper argues that Waltz’s misinterpretation of some of Rousseau’s texts makes Waltz’s thesis on international anarchy and constant state of war differ from Rousseau’s thoughts on state and interstate relations. This paper will use the Hermeneutics method to provide an alternative interpretation of Rousseau’s works and criticize Waltz’s interpretation of them.