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Deadly Imbalances: Tripolarity and Hitler's Strategy of World Conquest. By Randall L. Schweller. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998. 267p. $49.50 cloth, $18.50 paper.
Randall Schweller is in line with the development of the realist theory of international relations, beginning with E. H. Carr and Hans Morgenthau, continuing more recently with Kenneth Waltz and Stephen Walt. This book has two goals, one theoretical and one historical. The theoretical goal is to extend and develop classical realism, particularly in regard to predictions about system structure and alliance behavior. The historical goal is to argue that a complete understanding of the outbreak and course of World War II requires accounting for system structure as well as factors such as Nazi ideology and the leadership of Adolf Hitler.
Schweller elaborates on realist theory by creating two new theoretical typologies. The first is a new classification of states, emphasizing both capability and interests. He moves beyond Walt's "balance of threat" theory by more openly allowing for states to have revisionist or offensive interests as well as defensive goals. This focus on the goals of states allows Schweller to build on the traditional distinction between revisionist and status quo states and present a virtual menagerie of state types that differ on the basis of interests and power. For example, "wolves" are poles with unlimited revisionist aims, whereas "owls" are lesser great powers that strongly support the status quo.
The second typology is a new classification of alliance behavior. While more traditional realist...