Contemporary International Relations

Module Code: PO4700

Module Name: Contemporary International Relations

• ECTS Weighting: 15
• Semester/Term Taught: Michaelmas + Hilary Term
• Contact Hours: 1 hour seminar weekly plus tutorials
• Module Personnel: Lecturer - Professor Tom Pegram

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

• Describe the key assumptions which distinguish contemporary theories of international relations from each other
• Analyse the purpose, coherence and contradictions of contemporary theories of international relations as they apply to the issues of security and international human rights regimes
• Apply knowledge of the different uses of theory, in particular problem-solving and critical reflection, and their respective contribution to understanding international relations
• Judge the contribution of different theories of international relations to understanding and explaining the significance of international human rights and the role of the United Nations in world politics
• Identify the role and interactions of governance actors (public, private and civil society) in the fields of security and human rights
• Critically evaluate the nature and impact of 9/11 on international relations theory and conceptions of security in world affairs
• Critically evaluate the nature and impact of international humanitarian and human rights standards on global politics since the end of the Cold War.

Module Learning Aims

By the end of this course, students will be familiar with major themes and debates in international politics scholarship and their application to a variety of issue-areas related to security and human rights. They will have a good command of both rationalist and sociological explanations of international political outcomes.

Module Content

Although a ‘common sense’ view of world politics is often presented in non-academic contexts, there is little agreement among experts on what international relations is, and how we should think about the discipline. This module enables students to critically examine the conventional wisdom and as a result to gain a more critical understanding of international relations. Part I provides a survey of theoretical perspectives in international relations, moving beyond the classical division between realism and liberalism. It also integrates a focus on security to animate key theoretical claims and their application. In Part II, the course turns to the thematic domain of international human rights regimes to assess how international relations scholarship is adapting to, and making sense of, contemporary developments in this fast-moving arena.

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Recommended Reading List

Brown, Chris and Kirsten Ainley, Understanding International Relations, 4th edition (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009)
Burchill, Scott and Andrew Linklater et al., Theories of International Relations, 4th edition (Palgrave MacMillan, 2009)
Booth, K. and N. J. Wheeler, The Security Dilemma: Fear, Cooperation, and Trust in World Politics (Palgrave Macmillan, 2008)
Kolodziej, E. A., Security and International Relations (Cambridge University Press, 2005)
Freeman, M., Human Rights: an Interdisciplinary Approach (Polity Press, 2011)
Danchin, P. G. and H. Fischer, United Nations Reform and the New Collective Security (Cambridge University Press, 2010)

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Assessment Details

2 essays counting for 20% each
1 x 3-hour examination counting for 60% of the final mark

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