Ashworth describes how the discipline of international relations has been heavily influenced by historical narratives and that "no single idea has been more influential" than the notion that there was a debate between utopian and realist thinking.
Ashworth menjelaskan bagaimana disiplin hubungan internasional sangat dipengaruhi tulisan-tulisan sejarah dan "tak satu pemikiran pun yang lebih berpengaruh" daripada artian bahwa terdapat perdebatan antara pemikiran utopia dan realis.