The greatest possible honor for an international lawyer is to be invited to deliver the Hague Academy General Course in International Law. Rosalyn Higgins was so honored and this volume is the revised text of the lectures she delivered there. Its purpose is to show that there is an essential and unavoidable choice to be made between the perception of international law as either a system of neutral rules or as a system of decision-making directed towards the attainment of specific declared values. This book focuses on resolving this in addition to many other difficult and unanswered issues in contemporary international law. The topics she addresses include human rights, allocating competence, self determination, and the individual use of force in international law. This accessible volume will be particularly useful to scholars and students of international law who seek a better understanding of the subject and desire to see how the great web of inter-related concepts which comprise international law are held together as a coherent and cohesive whole. "A learned and serious introduction to international law by a recognized scholar in the field."-- Foreign Affairs "Professor Higgins achieves her objective--to depart from the traditional style of the general courses in international law given at the Hague Academy of International Law and to offer instead her own perspectives and ideas. It is a rich harvest, and it should stimulate many discussions. She maintains a balance between being controversial and critical, on the one hand, and being a pioneering problem-solver, on the other hand. It is not surprising that the American Society of International Law has already awarded its Certificate of Merit to her for this book...."-- Michigan Law Review "Rosalyn Higgins's book provides the best overview of the current role of international law. It is a balanced and reliable accounting of the achievements and limitations of international law, as well as a helpful guide to the way it works in relation to some of the main problems of international life."-- American Political Science Review Rosalyn Higgins QC is also author of UN Peacekeeping 1946-1967: Documents and Commentary (OUP, vols 3 and 4 still in print, 1981)