Peace and War: A Theory of International Relations

Raymond Aron, Peace and War: A Theory of International Relations, Garden City, N.Y.: Anchor Press, 1973.

From the publisher: Peace and War by Raymond Aron is one of the greatest books ever written on international relations. Aron’s starting point is the state of nature that exists between nations, a condition that differs essentially from the civil state that holds within political… More

Democracy and Totalitarianism

Raymond Aron, Democracy and Totalitarianism, New York: Praeger, 1968.

Aron’s great theory of the way of government and “constitutional” pretensions of Totalitarian systems.

The Opium of the Intellectuals

Raymond Aron, The Opium of the Intellectuals, introduction Harvey C. Mansfield, New York, N.Y.: Norton, 1962.

Aron’s classic work explains the attraction of intellectuals (particularly French and European) to the totalitarian movements of the 20th century, whether leftist or fascist.  One of the most lucid political analyses of the 20th century, Aron uses his wide knowledge of philosophy… More

On War

Raymond Aron, On War, New York: W.W. Norton, 1968.

This provocative volume re-examines and analyzes a problem that has plagued mankind from the beginning of history through the present atomic age. The author promotes his belief in a minimum program to limit aggression by means of conventional arms and by maintaining a reasonably high… More

The Century of Total War

Raymond Aron, The Century of Total War, London: Praeger Press, 1954.

From a review in Foreign Affairs: Though writing in the first instance as a Frenchman to Frenchmen, M. Aron’s very thoughtful and incisive analysis is of universal interest. Seeing the world in the midst of a chain reaction of wars, he seeks some way of mastering violence and yet… More

Memoirs: Fifty Years of Political Reflection

Raymond Aron, Memoirs: Fifty Years of Political Reflection, New York: Holmes & Meier, 1995.

Aron’s memoirs are an indispensable document  of 20th century political history. Describes his studies in Germany before the war, his relations with Jean-Paul Sartre, his growing disillusionment with pure philosophy and his discovery of political thinking, his recollections of his… More

De Gaulle, Israel, and the Jews

Raymond Aron, De Gaulle, Israel, and the Jews, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2004.  

Aron’s collected writings on De Gaulle, Israel, and the Jews. Features Aron’s unforgettable analysis of De Gaulle’s (infamous) criticism of Jews following Israel’s success in the 1967 War.     From the publisher: Description The lives of Raymond Aron and… More