The present chapter offers an exegetical and critical analysis of the theory of international politics Kenneth N. Waltz offers in his highly consequential Theory of International Politics. The first section focuses on Waltz’s critique of “reductionists,” and highlights the crucial link between this critique and his conception of the proper, “bounded” realm of international-relations theory. The second section discusses Waltz’s conception of the anarchic structure of international politics, which is the main explanatory factor of his theory. The third section highlights three essential outcomes of anarchy Waltz deems important to his theory: self-help, constant possibility of conflict/insecurity, and the chronic difficulty of cooperation among states in anarchy. The main theme of the fourth section is Waltz’s famous balance-of-power theory. The fifth section examines his claim that bipolar international systems facilitate more efficient balancing, and thus stability, than multipolar systems. All five sections highlight theoretical and conceptual shortcomings in Waltz’s enterprise. This critical attitude is adopted for two reasons: to better understand Waltz’s theory, and to explain its impact on the disarrayed evolution of realism in particular and International Relations (IR) in general.