|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
International Relations: Religion, Identity and Nationalism
|
|
|
|
|
1. To emphasize the importance of religion, identity and nationalism in Global Politics.
2. To examine the impact of (the) globalization (of capitalism) on identity.
3. To introduce sociological theories of nationalism.
4. To consider post-secular or post-western alternatives to International Relations Theory.
|
|
|
|
|
This course will examine the impact of religion, culture and identity on international politics in an increasingly globalized world. The discipline of International Relations (IR) conventionally refers to relations between territorial, sovereign states in an anarchic and unequal world. States, or independent political communities, are assumed to be the natural political community of mankind and to command the allegiance of those whom are subjected to their rule. The culture, identity and religion of states are not conventionally considered relevant to how states interact with other states. Recent events, however, have led to a ‘cultural turn’ and renewed interest in issues related to culture, religion and identity in IR. On the one hand, the intensification of the processes associated with ‘globalization’ has resulted in the proliferation of transnational religious actors from faith-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs) concerned with ending poverty to militant, religious organizations affiliated to Al Qaeda. These transnational religious actors have increasingly challenged the sovereign state’s monopoly on international discourse and, in some cases, contested the legitimacy of the state as representative of the political will of its ‘people’ as seen in the ‘Arab Spring’. On the other hand, the events of September 11, 2001 and the resultant US-led ‘War on Terror’ have reinforced the importance of religion to individual and collective identities and rekindled the specter of a ‘clash of civilizations’ (Huntington 1996) pitting a Judeo-Christian West against a resurgent Islamic civilization. This certainly appears to be the view of the Trump Administration in the USA. Religion has moved from the margins of IR back to its center-stage.
However, given its centrality to the discipline, did it really go away? To what extent was the modern international order instituted in Westphalia in 1648 itself an attempt to contain religious and cultural conflict in Europe? Furthermore, how will the increasing resurgence of the non-western world and China and India in particular transform the contemporary international order and the discipline of IR? Will the anticipated eclipse of the West lead to a rethinking of the conventional ontology, epistemology and methodology of International Relations paving the way for a decolonial (Mignolo 2011, Shilliam 2015), ‘post-western’ (Shani 2008) or 'global' IR (Acharya 2015)? These and many other questions will be discussed in the course with reference to a series of historical and contemporary case studies of relevance to global politics with a particular focus on the Asia-Pacific and Islamic worlds.
|
|
|
|
|
|
International Relations; Religion; Nationalism: Identity; Post-Secularism; Post-Western IR Theory.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aside from participating in class discussions, students will need to give one class presentation and submit one paper on a question approved by the instructor which is related to the course. All research papers should use empirical case studies to illustrate theoretical arguments and be approx. 5,000 words long (with references).
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic knowledge of International Relations theory desirable.
|
|
|
|
|
Information on the instructor can be found below:
http://www.e-ir.info/2017/01/02/interview-giorgio-shani/
|
|
|
|
|
|
9780415684811
|
|
|
Global Politics 2e
|
|
|
edited by Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss
|
|
Routledge
|
|
2013
|
|
|
IR textbook used in the UK
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Imagined Communities (second edition)
|
|
|
Benedict Anderson
|
|
Verso
|
|
1991
|
|
|
Classic work on Nationalism
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nationalism
|
|
|
Anthony Smith
|
|
Polity
|
|
2010
|
|
|
Introduction to Ethno-symbolism
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nations and Nationalism
|
|
|
Ernest Gellner
|
|
Blackwell
|
|
1983
|
|
|
Classic Modernist text
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nations and Nationalism since 1780 (second edition)
|
|
|
Eric Hobsbawm
|
|
Cambridge University Press
|
|
1994
|
|
|
Classic Marxist analysis
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|