Table of Contents

Foreword by John Galtung Preface Introduction Research Design International Theory and Social Order in Civilizational Thought Comparison of Civilizational Thought: The Cases and the Method Principle-Oriented Patterns of Social Order Moral Principles as the Basis of Social Order Dharma and Caste as the Basis of Social Order Asha and Contract as the Basis of Social Order Torah and National Identity as the Basis of Social Order Power-Oriented Patterns of Social Order The Ideal Community as the Basis of Social Order The Wise King as the Basis of Social Order Education as the Basis of Social Order Heroism as the Basis of Social Order Coercive Power as the Basis of Social Order Peaceful External Relations as the Basis of Social Order The Politics of Exclusion as the Basis of Social Order Power Politics as the Basis of Social Order Conclusions: Comparison of the Ideas of Social Order Appendix Bibliography Index

Promotional Information

A comparison of seven major civilizations through their fundamental social, political, religious, and literary texts.

About the Author

VILHO HARLE is Professor of Intrernational Relations at University of Lapland in Finland. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Center for International Studies, the London School of Economics in 1996-1997. He has published and edited more than ten books and journal issues as well as a number of articles in scientific journals.

Reviews

"A book of this sort has been long overdue. Professor Harle's work provides the most erudite foundation for a revision of Euro-centric and mono-cultural notions of international order that I have yet read." Stephen Chan. Dean of Humanities. The Nottingham Trent University - "Vilho Harle possesses the kind of moral sensibility and intellectual ability that is all too rare in academia, especially in his field of international studies. In this book, Dr. Harle displays a deep, comparattive command of the principal ideas and values across a number of civilizations and the capacity to discover humanity's 'common cultural heritage' in which lies the possibility for global peace and inter-civilization decency." Shiraz Dossa. Professor of Political Science. St. Francis Xavier University. Nova Scotia, Canada