| Sovereignty: Moral and Historical Perspectives Contributor(s): Johnson, James Turner (Author) |
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ISBN: 1626161054 ISBN-13: 9781626161054 Publisher: Georgetown University Press OUR PRICE: $178.15 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: March 2014 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Religion | Religion, Politics & State - Political Science | International Relations - General - Religion | Ethics |
| Dewey: 320.15 |
| LCCN: 2013026133 |
| Physical Information: 0.56" H x 5.5" W x 8.5" (0.85 lbs) 176 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Johnson examines the idea of sovereignty, which formally emerged as a political ideal in the 17th century. Most analysts understand sovereignty as referring to a particular national territory inhabited by a particular people, and the right of those people to defend their territory against any challenge to it. But Johnson contends that sovereignty's pre-Enlightement historical roots, drawing on classic just war thinking, provide an alternative approach: responsibility for the common good. He claims that these two conceptions--sovereignty as simply self-defense and sovereignty as acting on behalf of the common good--are in direct conflict, and that contemporary interpretations of international affairs must acknowledge this tension. Part I focuses on the two conceptions of sovereignty as they developed historically, while Part II turns to applications: historical and radical Islam, and then to the international debate over the "responsibility to protect" as expressed in a variety of contemporary conflicts. Johnson's aim is to create a new conception of sovereignty that synthesizes notions of self-defense with an understanding of the common good. |