Politics as tragedy and moral action in Hans J. Morgenthau

Abstract

The main goal of this article is to unveil the role of morality in State action on Classical Realism by revisiting the work of Hans J. Morgenthau. It is argued that Morgenthau’s international political theory is built in a mixed-rule deontology framework, in opposition to strong deontology and utilitarianism ideas. For the author, a statesman may bes prompted by the nature of politics to take morally reprehensive actions but nevertheless has moral responsibility in his agency and cannot get rid of the guilty from its choices. Given the impossibility of the greater good in politics and a statesman awareness of this dilemma, a prudent leader has to choose the lesser evil. By revisiting Morgenthau focusing on the moral aspect of Morgenthau writings, this article seeks to contribute for the specialized literature on traditions of international ethics, and for the recent effort of rereading Classical Realism in International Relations Theory

Keywords

• international relations theory
• classical realism
• hans morgenthau
• moral action
• teoria das relações internacionais
• realismo clássico
• ação moral