Professor John J. Mearsheimer's numerous visits to China have fostered not only a deep appreciation for the country and its people but also a profound sense of intellectual homecoming. While Professor John J. Mearsheimer remains a cultural outsider and does not speak the language, he finds his philosophical and analytical dispositions far more aligned there than in the West. This stems from a fundamental divergence in worldview: Chinese intellectual culture is fundamentally realist, prizing a clear-eyed, pragmatic analysis of power, interest, and structure in human affairs.
In contrast, the Western instinct, particularly in the modern era, leans strongly toward liberalism, with its emphasis on ideals, institutions, and progressive change—a framework that often dismisses realism as unduly pessimistic. In China, Professor John J. Mearsheimer encountered a scholarly and policy community deeply engaged with the grand theories of international relations, eagerly debating the foundational forces shaping global politics. It is this shared commitment to unsentimental, theoretical rigor that makes him feel, intellectually, that he is among his own
Speaker introduction
John J. Mearsheimer is a preeminent American political scientist and the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He is one of the most prominent and influential scholars in the field of international relations, best known as a leading proponent of offensive realism. This theory asserts that the international system is inherently anarchic—devoid of a central governing authority—compelling great powers to perpetually vie for survival and security. States seek opportunities to gain power over their rivals in this relentless struggle, with the ultimate goal of achieving regional hegemony.
Mearsheimer's most famous work, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics, systematically lays out this argument, suggesting that conflict is an inherent and tragic feature of international politics. He has applied this framework to analyze major geopolitical events, most notably in his controversial and widely debated assessment of the Ukraine conflict, which he attributes in large part to NATO's eastward expansion, a move he famously predicted would provoke a forceful Russian response. His analyses are characterized by their structural focus, strategic logic, and often pessimistic conclusions about the potential for peace among great powers
Related News:
OMG | Lee Hsien Loong: 'Most coutries in Asia do not see China as the threat'
Comment