Conflict Studies
SO4253 Conflict Studies (15 ECTS credits)
Lecturer(s): Dr Andrew Finlay
Module Content/Outline:
The question that this module seeks to address is: what if any role might sociology and/or anthropology play in conflict resolution and peacestudies? It is worth asking because of renewed interest in sociology and anthropology on the part of liberal interventionists. We will begin by looking at the role envisioned by John Brewer and Roger MacGinty. For both authors the problem is communal conflict, and they argue that anthropology and sociology have the requisite expertise in ethnicity, identity, community, inequality to comprehend and address communal conflict.
In the Part I we will explore western liberal notions of communal conflict; the assumptions about violence, culture, race/ethnicity and identity that underpin these notions of communal conflict and ‘solutions’ to it. We will then look at the work of several authors who problematise these assumptions. The problem with liberal peace theory is that the West is positioned as the universal arbiter of peace/conflict and it consequently lacks the conceptual tools to reflect on the reproduction of violence – communal and otherwise -- by Western liberal hegemony itself.
In Part II we will attempt to develop the conceptual tools to enable us to develop a reflexive critique of Western, liberal techniques of conflict resolution and peacemaking [pacification]. Central to this will be understanding the forms of power, sovereignty and governance that emerged with the modern nation state n Europe and which still hold us in their sway. We will sketch alternatives to the roles envisioned by Brewer and MacGinty: not a sociology/anthropology of conflict but a sociology/anthropology of peacemaking/pacification/ liberal intervention and of resistance to the hegemony of the western liberal state.
This module has a serious theoretical orientation, but the empirical touchstone is the peace process in Ireland, but reference will be made to other peace agreements and students are encouraged to explore the cases studies that interest them.
Learning Objectives:
On successful completion of this module you will have a critical understanding of:
- communal conflict and liberal peace
- western liberal approaches to the management or government of ethnic difference and communal conflict and the knowledge claims about conflict, culture and identity that underpin them.
- critiques of liberal intervention
- different approaches to understanding power, sovereignty, the state, liberal peace/intervention and colonialism
- the relationship between power, violence and knowledge including social scientific knowledge
Lectures & Tutorials/ Contact hours:
One lecture and one tutorial per week.
Workload:
Lectures: 20 hrs; Tutorials: 20 hrs; Exams/assignments: 22 hrs; Self-study: 288 hrs. Total: 350 hours.
Recommended Texts/ Key Reading:
- Finlay A. (2010) Governing Ethnic Conflict, Consociation, Identity and the Price of Peace, London: Routledge.
- Brewer J., (2010) Peace a Sociological Approach, Polity
Assessment
- Penalties for late submission: Without an authorised extension, the mark given will be lowered by one grade
- Part I: Coursework (50%),
- Part II: Exam (50%)
- Examination: 1 x 3-hour examination
- Students will each [together with a colleague] be expected to lead one tutorial discussion in each semester. This is compulsory but not formally assessed