MACMILLAN Eduard Bernstein on Social Democracy and International Politics: Essays and Other Writings

This book presents three later works by the German social-democratic thinker and politician Eduard Bernstein, translated into English in full for the first time: Social Democracy and International Politics: Social Democracy and the European Question; League of Nations or League of States; and International Law and International Politics: The Nature, Questions, and Future of International Law. Written at the height of WW1, they address the abrupt collapse of international socialist cooperation after its outbreak, and outline a vision for peace in Europe and beyond. Bernstein argues for an ethical, democratic approach to international relations, governed by a corpus of international law, and safeguarded by an international union dedicated to preserving peoples’ right to self-determination. He is sceptical of the state-centrism of early-20th-century liberal proposals for developing strong international institutions, while also deeply critical of militarist and imperialist political leaders and thinkers for preventing even these limited proposals from being realised. Instead, in these works, Bernstein urges social democrats to campaign for a system of international economic, legal, and cultural relations that he calls the ‘republic of peoples’, and he explores themes of patriotism, class struggle, diplomacy, and free trade that still carry resonance today. Review “Eduard Bernstein spent his life trying to plot a path forwards for a Europe forever teetering on the brink of conflict. Marius Ostrowski’s fabulous collection of Bernstein’s most profound works now enables an entirely new generation to learn from his insights, as thinkers and activists again struggle to combine allegiance to principled commitments with the unsettling realities of dark and troubled times.” (Professor Marc Stears, Macquarie University, Australia) “This valuable and fluent translation of Bernstein’s wartime writings admirably illustrates the intermeshing of his thought as social-democratic theorist and as astute commentator on the period. Marius Ostrowski accompanies it with an accomplished scholarly introduction and annotations that illuminate and contextualize the ideas of this leading 20th-century thinker.” (Emeritus Professor Michael Freeden, Mansfield College, University of Oxford, UK) From the Back Cover This book presents three later works by the German social-democratic thinker and politician Eduard Bernstein, translated into English in full for the first time: Social Democracy and International Politics: Social Democracy and the European Question; League of Nations or League of States; and International Law and International Politics: The Nature, Questions, and Future of International Law. Written at the height of WW1, they address the abrupt collapse of international socialist cooperation after its outbreak, and outline a vision for peace in Europe and beyond. Bernstein argues for an ethical, democratic approach to international relations, governed by a corpus of international law, and safeguarded by an international union dedicated to preserving peoples’ right to self-determination. He is sceptical of the state-centrism of early-20th-century liberal proposals for developing strong international institutions, while also deeply critical of militarist and imperialist political leaders and thinkers for preventing even these limited proposals from being realised. Instead, in these works, Bernstein urges social democrats to campaign for a system of international economic, legal, and cultural relations that he calls the ‘republic of peoples’, and he explores themes of patriotism, class struggle, diplomacy, and free trade that still carry resonance today. About the Author Marius S. Ostrowski is Examination Fellow in Politics at All Souls College, University of Oxford, UK.