Review: International Politics and Organization: The Nation-State and the Crisis of World Politics
| Date | 01 September 1978 |
| Published date | 01 September 1978 |
| Author | E. Donald Briggs |
| DOI | 10.1177/002070207803300324 |
| Subject Matter | Review |
INTERNATIONAL
POLITICS
AND
ORGANIZATION
651
sovereignty
in
the
society
of
nations,
which
is
really
what
this book
is
about.
The
author
traces
the
effects
of three
decades
of
the
proliferation
of
small
states
on
diplomatic
relations,
international
conferences,
and
the
administration,
membership,
and
financing
of
international
organiza-
tions.
He
makes
a
number
of
interesting
observations
and
poses several
pertinent
questions,
for
example, must
the
international
community
be
further
fragmented
in
the name
of
democracy?
His
principal
con-
clusions are
that
equilibrium
in
the
community
of
nations
has
been
eroded
and
that
the present
system
is
badly
in
need of corrective
ac-
tion.
He
also
outlines
a
number
of
alternative
policy
options
for
limit-
ing
the
powers
of
microstates
and their
participation
in
international
organizations.
These
are
both
perceptive
and
practical
and
should
be
seriously
considered
by
international
jurists, bureaucrats,
and
policy-
makers.
In
fact,
this
book
is
invaluable reading
for anyone
interested
in
the
phenomenon
of
microstates.
It
is
well
written
and
its
copious
footnotes
and
references
provide
useful
leads
for
the
research
student.
George
C.
Abbott/University
of
Glasgow
THE
NATION-STATE
AND
THE
CRISIS
OF
WORLD
POLITICS
Essays
on
International
Politics
in
the
Twentieth
Century
John
H.
Herz
New
York:
David
McKay,
1976,
viii,
3o7pp,
$5.95
The
cost
of
publishing
being what
it
is
today,
the
reader
of
this
volume
may
be
forgiven
for
wondering
how,
and
why,
it
came
to
exist.
It
con-
sists
of
twelve
essays
written
between
1942
and
1974,
all
but
one
of
which have previously
been
published
in
one
form
or
another.
The
lengthy
introduction,
which
devotes
2-5
pages
to
commenting
on
each
of
the
essays,
makes
it
plain
that
the
author
considers
the
selections
'a
chart
of
my
own
journey
...
through
the
maze
of
facts
and
events,
in-
terpretations
and
analyses'
which
constitute
international
politics
(p
4).
For
those
interested
in
assessing
Herz's
contributions
to
the
study
of
international
politics,
therefore,
this
may
be
a
useful
volume.
For
those
looking
for
substantive
insights
into
the
complexities
of
the
field
To continue reading
Request your trial