The tragic vision of politics : ethics, interests, and orders / Richard Ned Lebow.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Print version record.

"Is it possible to preserve national security through ethical policies? Richard Ned Lebow seeks to show that ethics are actually essential to the national interest. Recapturing the wisdom of classical realism through a close reading of the texts of Thucydides, Clausewitz and Hans Morgenthau, Lebow argues that, unlike many modern realists, classical realists saw close links between domestic and international politics, and between interests and ethics. Lebow uses this analysis to offer a powerful critique of post-Cold-War American foreign policy. He also develops an ontological foundation for ethics and makes the case for an alternate ontology for social science based on Greek tragedy's understanding of life and politics. This is a topical and accessible book, written by a leading scholar in the field."--Jacket.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Nixon in hell -- 2. Tragedy and politics -- 3. Thucydides and war -- 4. Thucydides and civilization -- 5. Carl von Clausewitz -- 6. Hans J. Morgenthau -- 7. wisdom of classical realism -- 8. Running red lights and ruling the world -- 9. Tragedy and scholarship.

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