International Relations Theory

The discipline of international relations is a relatively young academic subject, only emerging as a distinct field within political science in the aftermath of World War I. To differentiate itself from the disciplines of international law and history, its intellectual predecessors, international relations has developed a number of theories of the nature of the international and its constituent parts, which seek to explain, understand, judge and even predict international behaviour. These theories are heavily indebted to previously established traditions in political philosophy and social theory and the ways in which they conceive of the nature of the state and decision makers, history, social scientific explanation and the relationship between politics and morality. The course is designed to introduce students to the major theoretical and conceptual traditions of international relations as a way to make sense of the complex issues, developments and events constituting the international. The key objective of the course is to introduce students to the most significant orthodox and critical theoretical approaches within international relations. A critical assessment will be made of the principal propositions and arguments of the theories drawn from the diverse traditions of classical realism, neo-realism, neoliberalism, constructivism, poststructuralism, feminism and gender and postcolonialism. Credit Level: 11 Year taken: Postgraduate