ABSTRACT
A noticeable shift in the orientation of theoretically innovative scholarship in IR/ IPE has taken place over the past two decades. The classic anarchy problematique of IR (i.e. the explication of the rational forms of action and the resultant repetitive patterns of interaction that are said to prevail where no overarching political authority exists) has received diverse renditions, as neo-Realists confronted liberal institutionalists, and constructivists joined in for good measure. Instead of seeking to understand anarchical international relations on purely rationalist grounds, by attributing particular motives of action to actors whose existence and identity were taken for granted and beyond explanation, numerous scholars have started to highlight and examine the historical parameters within which actors, identities and, indeed, rationalities are situated.
