International Relations: Power and Institutions

(POLM502)

International Relations or Imperial Relations: The Beginning

Harry Swinhoe
H.Swinhoe@exeter.ac.uk
@HarrySwinhoe
#POL2020
Office Hours (Amory, B204): Tuesday 10-11am
Wednesday 10-11am
Icebreaker
• Talk to your partner
• Find out their name
• Discuss what has brought you both to the module and what you want to get
out of it.
 • The aim of the module is to
The Module
illuminate why key concepts
and theories in IR take the
form that they do
• This involves exploring the
contexts within which these
theories emerged and how
they interact with one another
• By the end of the module
students should be able to
reflect on and articulate their
own theoretical assumptions
and arguments and apply
these to contemporary issues
in international politics
• 1. International Relations or Imperial Relations:
The Beginning
• 2. IR: The political discourse of anarchy?
• 3. The Inter War Years: Realists and Idealists
• 4. WWII and the Cold War: Changes in Realism
and the emergence of the English School
• 5. The resilience of institutions and the revival of
liberalism
• 6. Gender and World Politics
• 7. Constructivism and the end of the Cold War
• 8. The ‘Linguistic Turn’ Comes for IR
• 9. Normative IR theory
• 10. Decolonising International Relations
• 11. Conclusions: Has IR (theory) failed?
Seminars
• Seminars are student led and aimed at constructing knowledge and
exploring debates from the bottom up.
• If you don’t do the reading this limits your ability to participate and
has a negative impact on the other students.
• Each week two or three members of the class will present short
summaries of the essential readings.
• These are two be accompanied with a short handout (half a page or less of
bullet points).
Assessment
• The assessment will take the form of two 3000 word essays based on the two
halves of the module respectively.

• Essay 1
• 8 possible questions based on weeks 1-5
• Formative Essay Plan (500 words) Due Friday 20 th October
• Essay Due Noon Friday 24th November

• Essay 2
• 8 possible questions based on weeks 6-10
• Formative Essay Plan (500 words) Due Friday 1 st December
• Essay Due Friday 12th January
Tips
• When making notes keep track of the page numbers the notes refer
to. This makes both revision and written work much easier.
• Don’t start off by making really detailed notes on all of the reading –
Instead summarise the key argument/s made in the reading in a few
bullet points.
• If you feel comfortable doing so then creating a shared one drive or
google folder with classmates to share notes about the additional
readings can be useful.
Debrief
• Are there any terms or concepts in the reading which require more
explanation?
The Origins of IR: Story 1

• The horrors of WW1 and the Establishment of the

League of Nations meant that there was a desire to
understand the war, prevent it happening again, and
the means by which this could be achieved.

• Thus, the Davies sisters set up a Chair in IR at

Aberystwyth:
• "in memory of the fallen students of our
University“
• "for the study of those related problems of law
and politics, of ethics and economics, which are
raised by the prospect of a League of Nations“
• "...and for the truer understanding of civilisations
other than our own."
The Origins of IR: Story 1
The Origins of IR: Story 2
• The war was seen as horrendous because it was a highly destructive war between
white Europeans fought in Europe.
• It therefore threatened white supremacy.
• Similar wars must therefore be prevented.

• Adam Tooze on Wilson:

The Origins of IR: Story 2

• Lloyd Ambrosius on Wilson’s view of the war:

The Origins of IR: Story 2
• David Houston, Wilson’s Secretary of Agriculture account of Wilson’s
views:
The Origins of IR: Story 2

• W.E.B. Du Bois on WW1:

The Origins of IR: Story 3

• Story 2 is part of a longer trend.

• The discipline of IR emerged prior to
WW1 and was explicitly about
colonial affairs and subjugation.
• Thakur and Vale – IR emerges during
and after the Boer War out of a
British desire prevent future
insurgencies (in this case by
coopting white Afrikaners and
simultaneously excluding black
Africans)
Group Discussion: Seminar Questions
• Group 1: Is “International Relations” better understood as “Imperial
Relations” both in terms of international politics and the discipline
itself?
• Group 2: Was ‘the problem’ of the twentieth century “the problem of
the colour line” and is this ‘the problem’ of the twenty first century?
• Group 3: Which is more persuasive in explaining international politics:
W. E. B Du Bois emphasis on race and relations between ‘the races’,
Mackinder’s emphasis on geography, or Lenin’s emphasis on
economic materialism?
 Group Discussion: Case Studies
• Group 1 – Du Bois
• Group 2 – Mackinder
• Group 3 – Lenin

• In your groups identify a 21st

century international political event
which can be explained by the
theorist assigned to your group or
which undermines their argument.
• Outline an argument as to why this
is the case.
Next Week
Seminar Questions

• What differentiates ‘hierarchy’ and ‘anarchy’?

• Which truly lies at the core of IR, ‘anarchy’ or ‘hierarchy’?
• Does the emphasis on anarchy necessarily produce state-centricity in IR?

Reading

• Read Chapter 1: Introduction in Dickinson G.L. The European Anarchy, (London: George Allen & Unwin LTD.), p. 9-14.
• Hobson JM (2014) ‘The Twin Self-Delusions of IR: Why ‘Hierarchy’ and Not ‘Anarchy’ is the Core Concept of IR’. Millennium -
Journal of International Studies 42(3): 557-575.
• Schmidt, Brian C. (2002) ‘Anarchy, World Politics and the Birth of a Discipline: American International Relations, Pluralist
Theory and the Myth of Interwar Idealism’, International Relations; 16(1): 9-31.