Course Description
Summary
In this wide-ranging introduction to the study of international politics, we will be exploring how states and non-state actors negotiate their interactions in an increasingly interconnected, interdependent and globalized world. Core themes will include: contending theoretical approaches to international relations (realism, liberalism/idealism, constructivism, structuralism, Marxism, feminism and post-colonialism); historical evolution of the international system; foreign policies of major global and regional powers; the growing international influence of non-state transnational actors such as terrorist networks and humanitarian non-governmental organizations; multilateral organizations and other institutional architectures of global governance; alternative global futures; and case studies of policy responses and solutions to major global issues, including economic inequality, environmental challenges, armed conflicts, and other forms of humanitarian crises.
