Game theory--the study of how people make choices while interacting with others--is one of the most popular technical approaches in social science today. But as Michael Chwe reveals in his insightful new book, Jane Austen explored game theory's core ideas in her six novels roughly two hundred years ago. Jane Austen, Game Theorist shows how this beloved writer theorized choice and preferences, prized strategic thinking, argued that jointly strategizing with a partner is the surest foundation for intimacy, and analyzed why superiors are often strategically clueless about inferiors. With a diverse range of literature and folktales, this book illustrates the wide relevance of game theory and how, fundamentally, we are all strategic thinkers. Although game theory's mathematical development began in the Cold War 1950s, Chwe finds that game theory has earlier subversive historical roots in Austen's novels and in "folk game theory" traditions, including African American folktales. Chwe makes the case that these literary forebears are game theory's true scientific predecessors. He considers how Austen in particular analyzed "cluelessness"--the conspicuous absence of strategic thinking--and how her sharp observations apply to a variety of situations, including U.S. military blunders in Iraq and Vietnam. Jane Austen, Game Theorist brings together the study of literature and social science in an original and surprising way.

Review
"An intellectual tour of the discipline of comparative politics with some of its most creative pioneers and contemporary practitioners. The carefully organized interviews offer surprising perspectives about our eclectic and evolving field, and remind us of why we became scholars of comparative politics in the first place." -- Edward Gibson, Northwestern University
"This fascinating history of comparative politics offers a panoramic view of major debates and of trends in theoretical and methodological approaches over the second half of the 20th century. It brings the field to life by letting scholars who shaped it sketch their own intellectual biographies. Reading it is a truly enriching and enjoyable experience for any comparativist." -- Evelyne Huber, University of North Carolina
"This book fills a huge void in the profession of political science. Through a series of fifteen carefully prepared and referenced, wide-ranging, and often captivating interviews with many of the most influential scholars of comparative politics, we gain a priceless perspective on the growth of the discipline and the craft of research and theory building. In their intelligent and probing interviews (and very valuable introductory chapters), Munck and Snyder go a long way toward correcting our crippling deficit in professional memory, while revealing the life histories, moral convictions, intellectual passions, and divergent theoretical and methodological approaches that have shaped and advanced comparative politics in the last half-century. This book should be read by everyone who is preparing for, or thinking about, a career in political science, no matter the field." -- Larry Diamond, coeditor, Journal of Democracy
"Reading autobiographical reflections of notable scholars is a pleasurable way of learning about a field of study. These interviews cover a good slice of modern comparative government. They are wide ranging, focused, and informative. And fun to read." -- Nelson W. Polsby, University of California, Berkeley
"To show how great works that have shaped our understanding of politics and society are rooted in individual lives is a wonderful project. Munck and Snyder are the best of guides. Thoroughly informed about the scholarship, they explore the personal side with deftness, tact, and imagination. The result is a series of lively and revealing intellectual portraits." -- Dietrich Rueschemeyer, Watson Institute for International Studies
"A fascinating oral history of comparative politics in the United States. You could read the collected books and articles of all the fifteen leading lights represented here and never grasp the insights that these interviews offer: how wars, immigration, and the economy shaped the research agenda; how the backgrounds, personalities, and life experiences of these scholars guided their work; and how these scholars evaluate one another and those beyond this elite circle. Munck and Snyder have performed an invaluable service to the discipline." -- Michael Coppedge, University of Notre Dame
"This distinctive book frequently illuminates the dynamics of major scholars' research agendas (and of their career paths more generally), thus making it highly recommended reading for researchers in this subfield." -- Choice
"I told my qualitative research class to read at least three of the interviews in the book and summarize what they took from each. The response was amazing. Most of them had read most of the book. They were moved, inspired, and reassured by it. Each of them felt validated by something one of these scholars said. We ended up discussing the interviews through much of the class... the discussion of how real scholars relate their world and their scholarship was so exciting to them that I didn't want to stop it. So thanks... for helping them to bridge the often daunting distance between themselves and the names on the texts they read in class -- it was truly rewarding." -- Margaret Keck, Johns Hopkins University
Product Description
In the first collection of interviews with the most prominent scholars in comparative politics since World War II, Gerardo L. Munck and Richard Snyder trace key developments in the field during the twentieth century.
Organized around a broad set of themes -- intellectual formation and training; major works and ideas; the craft and tools of research; colleagues, collaborators, and students; and the past and future of comparative politics -- these in-depth interviews offer unique and candid reflections that bring the research process to life and shed light on the human dimension of scholarship.
Giving voice to scholars who practice their craft in different ways yet share a passion for knowledge about global politics, Passion, Craft, and Method in Comparative Politics offers a wealth of insights into contemporary debates about the state of knowledge in comparative politics and the future of the field.

本书1940年英文版的首次出版，成为政治人类学作为人类学一个分支出现的标志。
本书是以“非洲学派”为代表的人类学家在上世纪三十年代于历史非洲殖民地的田野研究成果，亦被视为结构功能主义的代表研究之一。书中各项研究展现出的非现代国家的政治体制动作方式及其在殖民化的转型，对后来的政治研究及部族社会研究产生了很大的影响。

基于三十多年的观察，罗伯特·杰维斯在这本引起争论的书中推断，许多社会科学理论，尤其是政治学理论，其基础是错误的。从复杂理论的视角出发，作者观察到，我们生活在一个事物相互联系的世界中，我们行为的非故意后果是不可避免和难以预测的。这本书所引入的富有说服力的新概念，不仅有益于国际关系理念家，而且有益于所有对比较政治学和政治理论感兴趣的社会科学家。
利用形形色色的学术研究和大量富有启示的实例，罗伯特·杰维斯向人们表明，“系统效应”是社会和政治生活中重要但又常被忽略的部分……他的洞见也会激发那些对其他社会问题感到困惑的人的想象力……从总体上看，《系统效应》的寓意使人清醒而又富有价值。
——斯蒂芬·M.沃尔特 《大西洋月刊》
《系统效应》是一部重要和适时的著作，这几乎没有疑问。不仅外交官，而且所有面对决策任务而又无法确知替代行动后果的人都应该仔细研读这本书——这些人实际上构成了一个非常大的读者群。
——齐格蒙·鲍曼 《泰晤士文学增刊》