Statesmen commonly speak of the ned to architect a nationally advantageous international order. But how does one go about doing this? Traditionally, scholars ahve advised that order is rooted in patterned struggles over material power and interests. Recently, however, there has been a focus on the order-producing effects of international identity. This study defends the 'identity turn' by addressing how a construct as contingent as international identity can nevertheless sustain order during the upheaval of international crises. Drawing on the linguistic and political philosophy of Jean Francois Lyotard Ordering International Politics develops an innovative discourse analytic method that empirically demonstrates that, in crisis times, states can (and do) use 'representational force' - a forceful, but nonphysica, form of power exercised through language - to stabilize international identity and in turn international order. the empirical foil for this illustration, this study offers a concrete and highly readable example of how theoretical insights can make an important difference in historical interpretation and potentially in the contemporary practice of international affairs.

Statesmen commonly speak of the ned to architect a nationally advantageous international order. But how does one go about doing this? Traditionally, scholars ahve advised that order is rooted in patterned struggles over material power and interests. Recently, however, there has been a focus on the order-producing effects of international identity. This study defends the 'identity turn' by addressing how a construct as contingent as international identity can nevertheless sustain order during the upheaval of international crises. Drawing on the linguistic and political philosophy of Jean Francois Lyotard Ordering International Politics develops an innovative discourse analytic method that empirically demonstrates that, in crisis times, states can (and do) use 'representational force' - a forceful, but nonphysica, form of power exercised through language - to stabilize international identity and in turn international order. the empirical foil for this illustration, this study offers a concrete and highly readable example of how theoretical insights can make an important difference in historical interpretation and potentially in the contemporary practice of international affairs.

The arrival of post-industrial society has transformed the traditional bases of national power, and thus the methods used to measure the relative power of nations should be reassessed as well. Appreciating the true basis of national power requires not merely a meticulous detailing of visible military assets but also a scrutiny of larger capabilities embodied in such variables as the aptitude for innovation, the soundness of social institutions, and the quality of the knowledge base - all of which may bear upon a country's capacity to produce the one element still fundamental to international politics: effective military power. The authors reconfigure the notion of national power to accommodate a wider understanding of capability, advancing a conceptual framework that measures three distinct areas - national resources, national performance, and military capability - to help the intelligence community develop a better evaluation of a country's national power. The analysis elaborates the rationale for assessing each of these and offers ideas on how to measure them in tangible ways.