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Ja Hobson's Approach to International Relations J.A. HOBSON'S APPROACH TO INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS: AN EXPOSITION AND CRITIQUE David Long Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor Of Philosophy in International Relations at the London School of Economics. UMI Number: U042878 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Disscrrlation Publishing UMI U042878 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract This thesis argues that Hobson’s approach to international relations coheres around his use of the biological analogy of society to an organism. An aspect of this ‘organic analogy’ - the theory of surplus value - is central to Hobson’s modification of liberal thinking on international relations and his reformulated ‘new liberal internationalism’. The first part outlines a theoretical framework for Hobson’s discussion of international relations. His theory of surplus value posits cooperation as a factor in the production of value understood as human welfare. The organic analogy links this theory of surplus value to Hobson’s holistic ‘sociology’. Hobson’s new liberal internationalism is an extension of his organic theory of surplus value. This approach is contrasted to the domestic analogy and economism as bases of liberal internationalist thought. The second part examines Hobson’s ‘sociology’ of international relations. Hobson’s theory of imperialism is placed in the context of his theory of surplus value. Imperialism is sectionalism in the international system. For Hobson, internationalism advances from the isolation of the pre-industrial era, through the noninterventionism of Cobden, to positive internationalism, including some international economic management. Hobson’s proposals for international government rely on the domestic analogy. A broader vision of world society, however, emerges from the extension of the organic analogy to international relations. The third part locates Hobson in international relations scholarship. Hobson’s work is not straightforwardly idealist. His new liberal internationalism modifies liberal thought towards institutional solutions to international problems. It is concluded that some aspects of his analysis remain of interest to the contemporary international relations theorist. Acknowledgements I have incurred many debts while writing the thesis. Michael Banks started me off on the right foot and has been a source of encouragement and sensible advice. Peter Wilson read and commented on the thesis in its entirety, as did Rebecca Grant. Martin Ceadel, Robert Jackson, Cornelia Navari and Hidemi Suganami provided comments and criticisms on various chapters. I am also grateful to Ronen Palan, Gautam Sen and Rob Walker for giving time to more general discussions of my research. Presenting my work in a number of different fora provided me with stimulating discussion and criticism of my arguments. Earlier drafts of chapters were read in the LSE International Relations department at the Concepts and Methods seminars in 1987 and 1988, at the Politics of the World Economy general seminar in 1987 and at the Conflict and Peace Studies seminar in 1989; at the University of British Columbia Political Science departmental seminar in 1990; and at the International Studies Association Annual Convention, the Canadian Political Science Association Annual Convention and at the Hobson conference in Malvern, convened by John Pheby, all of which took place in 1990. The research was funded for three years by a Competition Award presented to me by the Economic and Social Research Council. The staff of the British Library of Political and Economic Science and the libraries of University College, London, University of British Columbia and Carleton University helped make my research a pleasant occupation rather than an onerous chore. My special thanks go to the officers of the South Place Ethical Society who permitted me to consult materials in the convivial surroundings of the library in Conway Hall and to the archivists at the BLPES and the Brynmor Jones Library at Hull University who patiently helped me find pamphlets and papers in their collections. Most of all, I thank Fran for her patience, her acute criticisms and her unstinting support. Contents Abstract 2 Acknowledgements 3 Part One 1 Introduction 5 2 Hobson’s Theoretical System 23 3 Hobson’s Framework for International Relations 67 Part Two 4 The International Relations of Imperialism 97 5 Economic Internationalism, Free Trade and International Government 142 6 International Government and the Maintenance of Peace 177 Part Three 7 Hobson and Idealism in International Relations 210 8 Hobson and the Liberal Tradition in International Relations 236 Select Bibliography 263 PART ONE Chapter One Introduction This thesis critically examines the approach to international relations in the writings of J.A. Hobson. Hobson was a writer, a journalist, a lecturer, a political activist, and propagandist for a group of left liberals in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is famous in international relations for originating the theory of imperialism subsequently adopted by Lenin. Focusing on Hobson’s writings on international relations, the thesis explores the theoretical structure and tensions in Hobson’s international theory; his analysis of, and concrete proposals for, contemporary international relations; and the social, political and economic theory that underlies his approach to international relations. Hobson’s framework for analysing international relations is a new liberal modification of liberal internationalism, Hobson’s new liberal internationalism entails the application of his theory of cooperative surplus beyond the boundaries of national societies and of his idea of an organic unity to international relations and the world economy. Hobson’s new liberal internationalism suggests that international relations and the world society as a whole is, like the several national societies, shifting away fromlaissez faire and individualism, towards increased social organisation and collectivism. The thesis draws on recent work in political theory and the history of political ideas on Hobson to develop his framework for international relations. The thesis demonstrates that Hobson’s international relations are an integral part and an extension of his analysis of social, political and economic life. The coherence (and the problems) of his international thought follow from the consonance of his international theories with his writings on domestic matters. For instance, the all-encompassing dichotomy of internationalism and imperialism in Hobson’s writings on international affairs is the dual aspect of his theory of the social surplus. While internationalism is associated with peace and democracy, through rational conscious collective control of social (international) life by the people (nations), imperialism connotes militarism and dictatorship, through the imposition of rule by a powerful sectional interest within the national (international) social organism. The thesis assesses the important contributions Hobson made to international theory, in the theory of imperialism but also beyond, that have been overlooked. This includes, first, a reassessment of Hobson’s theory of imperialism in international relations scholarship. especially recent work on hegemonic stability theory. The prevalent opinion of Hobson’s imperialism theory as ‘second image reductionism’ and ‘economic determinism’ is also refuted. Hobson was an important figure in the transformation of liberal internationalism, as he was with liberalism in domestic society. He was a forerunner of the functionalist approach to international organization. He was a theoretical and historical link between classical and ‘embedded’ liberalisms and a major mover in the shift away from free trade and classical liberal international political economy. He can also be interpreted as an alternative to the current agenda for liberalism in international relations. Finally, the thesis examines the theoretical tensions that appear in Hobson’s writings on international relations and a number of the criticisms of Hobson’s international theory. Hobson’s writings on international relations are particularly open to the charge of being too abstract, of relying heavily on a problematic domestic analogy and of being imbued with an economic determinism. In addressing the theoretical issues in Hobson’s discussion of international relations, the thesis is none of the following things: a chronology of Hobson’s thought on international relations; a study of Hobson’s international relations in terms of the great events of his lifetim e, e.g., the Boer War, the Great War and the Great Depression; a consideration of the specifics or the policy implications of Hobson’s proposals on international economic issues, like tariffs; or a discussion of the theory of imperialism beyond Hobson’s contribution to it. The thesis also excludes an examination of issues that bear on Hobson’s discussion of international relations
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