Richard Sherman |
Department of Political Science |
Leiden University | 
|
International Relations: Theories and Approaches |
| Leiden University | Notes |
| Department of Political Science | Final paper assignment |
| Fall 2004 | Readings |
| INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS: THEORIES AND APPROACHES |
| Lecturer: | Richard Sherman |
| Office: | 5B43 |
| Office hours: | Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00-12:00 |
| email: | rsherman@fsw.leidenuniv.nl |
| web: | http://homepage.mac.com/richard.sherman/ |
| Lectures: | Friday, 09:00-11:00 |
| Period: | 1e trimester |
| Room | 1A47 |
Course description The aim of the course is to introduce the variety of advanced theories and approaches in the study of International Relations and International Political Economy, and to apply these theories to specific cases. Such questions are discussed as: Which theory best explains the American war against Iraq? Is the state (still) the most relevant international actor? Why is international cooperation so difficult? Does what we see depend on where we stand? Is globalization beneficial? The general aim is to explore to what extent and in which way particular theories or approaches help us better to understand contemporary international politics. The course builds on any previous general Introduction to international relations course. The sessions are devoted to a structured discussion of the various approaches in a comparative fashion, based on relevant parts of the compulsory literature. These will be introduced by the lecturer, but students are expected to contribute actively. Along with three short essays, you will write a concluding paper applying one or more theories or approaches to a specific case, issue, or substantive area. Because active participation is an essential element of this course, attendance is compulsory. Assessment
Participation: 20% Literature 1. Baylis, John and Steve Smith (eds.), The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations, Oxford [etc.] : Oxford University Press. 2nd edition, 2001 2. Selected journal articles and book chapters (Total approximately 1100 pages) Period: 1e trimester Course requirements: Internationale Politiek Preliminaries: Please familiarize yourself with the material in Part One of the Baylis & Smith book ("The Historical Context", ch. 2-6) as necessary. Assigned reading should be completed before the meeting for which it is assigned. Schedule of readings |
| 1. September 17 | Course introduction | |
| 2. September 24 | Approaches, actors, levels of analysis | Baylis & Smith, Introduction + ch. 1 (1-50) |
| 3. October 1 | Debating three approaches: realism, liberalism, constructivism | John J. Mearsheimer, "The False Promise of International Institutions,"
International Security 19/3 (Winter 1994/1995): 5-49
Robert O. Keohane and Lisa L. Martin, "The Promise of Institutionalist Theory," International Security 20/1 (Summer 1995): 39-51 John Gerard Ruggie, "The False Premise of Realism," International Security 20/1 (Summer 1995): 62-70 John J. Mearsheimer, "A Realist Response," International Security 20/1 (Summer 1995): 82-93 |
| 4. October 8 | Realism | Baylis & Smith, ch. 7
Robert Gilpin, War and Change in World Politics (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1981), ch. 1 Kenneth Waltz, Theory of International Politics, (New York: Random House, 1979): ch. 4-9. David A. Lake, "Anarchy, Hierarchy, and the Variety of International Relations," International Organization 50/1 (Winter 1996): 1-33. |
| 5. October 15 | Liberalism | Baylis & Smith, ch. 8
Robert O. Keohane, "Neoliberal Institutionalism: A Perspective on World Politics," In International Institutions and State Power: Essays in International Relations Theory, edited by Robert O. Keohane, 1-20 (Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1989) Andrew Moravcsik, "Taking Preferences Seriously: A Liberal Theory of International Politics," International Organization 51/4 (1997):513-53. |
| 6. October 22 | Constructivism | Baylis & Smith, ch. 11
Alexander Wendt, "Anarchy Is What States Make of It: The Social Construction of Power Politics", International Organization 46/2: 391-425. Ronald Jepperson, Alexander Wendt, and Peter J. Katzenstein, "Norms, Identity, and Culture in National Security," chap. 2 in Peter J. Katzenstein, ed., The Culture of National Security: Norms and Identity in World Politics (New York: Columbia University Press, 1996) |
| 7. October 29 | Contemporary Marxist approaches | Immanuel Wallerstein, "The Rise and Future Demise of the World
Capitalist Robert Cox, "Gramsci, Hegemony, and International John Maclean, "Marxism and International Relations: A Strange
Case |
| 8. November 5 | Gender in international relations | Baylis & Smith, ch. 27
J. Ann Tickner, Gender in International Relations. Feminist Perspectives on Achieving Global Security (New York: Columbia University Press, 1992), ch. 1-2 Cynthia Enloe, Bananas, Bases, and Beaches: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), ch. 1, 7, 8 |
| 9. November 12 | Post-colonial theory | Arjun Appadurai, Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization (Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1996), ch. 1-3, 7 |
| 10. November 19 | Decision-theoretic approaches | James D. Fearon, "Rationalist Explanations for War ,"
International Organization 49(3) (Summer 1995), pp. 379-411
Jeffrey Berejekian, "The Gains Debate: Framing State Choice," American Political Science Review 91(4) (Dec. 1997): 789-805. Frank Schimmelfennig, "International Socialization in the New Europe: Rational Action in an Institutional Environment," European Journal of International Relations Vol. 6(1): 109_139 |
| 11. November 26 | The English School | Barry Buzan, From International to World Society? English School Theory and the Social Structure of Globalization (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), ch. 1, 2, 6 |
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Outline of assignments
1. Short essays (a): Two essays of about three pages dealing with the week's reading. Choose three weeks that are of particular interest to you. The short essay should be a critical response to the ideas and concepts in the reading: what is emphasized and what is excluded or neglected by the theory or approach under consideration; (how) are these emphases and exclusions useful or mistaken, etc. My expectation is that we will have a few paper-writers each week who might help begin our discussion. There is no need to sign up in advance for which weeks you want to write on, but I want you to bring your paper to class on the day we discuss the reading, rather than writing it after the discussion. 2. Short essays (b): Two additional essays, also of about three pages, on one of the chapters in the Bayliss and Smith book that is not on the assigned reading list. My hope is that this will help you both to broaden your substantive knowledge of the field and to identify a topic for your final paper. 3. Paper: a paper of 15-20 pages that applies one or more of the theoretical approaches to a specific case, issue, or substantive area. I will provide more detailed guidelines for the final paper later in the trimester. Please be careful to ensure that you write all five of the short essays, and that the essays on the week's readings (that is, number 1 above) are completed when you come to class on the day that the reading is being discussed. The remaining two short essays (number 2 above) can be handed in any time on or before November 26. The due date for the final paper is Dec. 3, re-submit date Dec. 17. |