Abstract If integrative pluralism in international relations theorising is the way forward, how can we still maintain some type of demarcation between pre-existing paradigms in order to not throw the baby out with the bath water? The notions of themes and ontological primacy provide a useful intervention in this regard. They both link realism and constructivism yet at the same time differentiate between the two enough to allow for the original free-standing paradigm to maintain its veracity and usefulness as an explanatory tool to explain the international order. This article promotes the idea that realism and constructivism engage with many similar themes; it is their ontologies and methodologies that are the key points of departure and are worth being further explored. The article concludes that taking the notion of ontological primacy seriously allows for much needed theoretical pluralism, while effectively maintaining the foundational moorings of longstanding international relations theories.

中文翻译：

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从主题和本体论的角度重新思考现实主义和建构主义

摘要如果国际关系理论中的整合多元主义是前进的方向，那么我们如何仍可以维持现有范式之间的某种分界，以免婴儿被洗澡水淹没？主题和本体优先性的概念在这方面提供了有用的干预。它们都将现实主义和建构主义联系在一起，但同时又将两者区别开来，足以使原始的独立范式保持其准确性和有用性，以此作为解释国际秩序的解释工具。本文提倡这样一种观念，即现实主义和建构主义与许多相似的主题有关。它们的本体论和方法论是出发点，值得进一步探讨。