Thomas Hobbes and international relations: from realism to rationalism

This article attempts to provide a correction to the exclusive realist interpretations of Thomas Hobbes. It makes the point that Hobbes is not as close to a realist understanding of international relations as has been prevalently held. Given Hobbes's conception of man and the state of nature, the formation of Leviathan and the law of nature, it is here argued that Hobbes gives us a perception of international relations which is not always conflictual and comprises the adjustments of conflicting interests, leading to the possibility of alliances and cooperation in international relations.     

The Location Choice of Foreign Direct Investment Within Turkey: An Empirical Analysis

This paper investigates the location choice of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Turkey over the period 1996–2003. Using FDI data at the provincial level and negative binomial model, the empirical evidence confirms that agglomeration economies and information costs are the most important determinants of FDI location in Turkey. Specifically, both foreign and domestic agglomerations and in particular urbanization economies strongly affect the location decision of foreign investors. The results also suggest that foreign investors are attracted to provinces with fast growing market, more educated labour force, high density of road network, greater public investment, milder climate, larger area and better quality of life. On the other hand, the empirical findings show that wage, productivity, labour availability, unionization, sea and air transportation, free zones and instability have no significant impacts on the location decision.     

The Proliferation of Monism to the East and the Making of the Religion of the Future in Early Twentieth‐Century Korea

This study illuminates the transnational proliferation of monism, a worldview that drew on evolutionary theory to unify both science and religion and ultimately replace traditional religions. Particular attention is paid to how monism was transmitted from Germany via Japan to Korea in the early twentieth century, and how this impacted local endeavours to imagine a religion of the future. A prominent figure in this trajectory was the religious thinker Yi Tonhwa (1884–1950) who endeavoured to use the tenets of monism to transform the Ch’?ndogyo, “Religion of the Heavenly Way,” one of the most prominent religions in Korea at the time, into a universal religion of the future. The result was among the closest to a monist religion the world had seen, although the efforts to align the Ch’?ndogyo with modern scientific thought also deprived the religion of native elements. This would have significant repercussions for the religion as the scientific optimism that had sustained the global monist movement faded away after 1945.