Department of European Studies & Modern Languages, Unit Catalogue 2008/09 |
EU30745 Culture and religion in international relations |
| Credits: 6 |
| Level: Honours |
| Semester: 2 |
| Assessment: EX50ES50 |
| Requisites: |
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Aims: To provide an understanding of the on-going saliency of culture and religion (broadly defined here as the main world religions) in the theory of international relations as it is developing today, and in selected issue-areas - conflict, cooperation, diplomacy and statecraft, peace-making and conflict resolution, democracy promotion, and foreign aid policy.
Learning Outcomes: By the end of this course students should be able to critically examine and evaluate debates and policies regarding: 1. Culture and religion in the theory of international relations as it is developing today, and in selected issue-areas - conflict, cooperation, diplomacy and statecraft, peace-making and conflict resolution, democracy promotion, and foreign aid policy. 2. The origins of the modern Westphalian system of international relations. 3. Different perspectives of social theory and how they have tried to explain different events regarding culture and religion in international relations, and the terms often associated with these perspectives, such as fundamentalism, extremism, militancy, terrorism, etc. 4. Key religious non-state or transnational actors in international relations - such as the Catholic Church, and the Organiation of the Islamic Conference. 5. The role of culture and religion in war and international conflict. 6. The role of culture and religion in promoting international cooperation, peace-making, and conflict resolution. 7. The nature of religion and the history and development of diplomacy and statecraft. 8. The role of culture and religion promoting democracy. 9. The role of culture and religion in foreign aid policy. Skills: Skills in critical analysis, conceptual thinking, precision in the use of written and spoken language, exercise of independent judgement, reasoned argument, teamwork and research methods are developed and assessed in this unit. Content: The course re-examines the existing theory of international relations in view of the growing impact of culture and religion on international affairs, and how this has been facilitated by a variety of aspects of globalization as well as state policies and foreign policies. This necessarily also involves the various types of secularism and their impact on international relations. The way culture and religion have been marginalized in the main perspectdives of international relations - realism, pluralism, and globalism, provides the basis for how culture and religion can be brought back into the theory of international relations, and then become part of a variety of key issue-areas in international relations - conflict, cooperation, diplomacy and statecraft, peace-making and conflict resolution, democracy promotion, and foreign aid policy. It does not include the impact of culture and religion in domestic politics, which is covered in other units, especially in EU30732 The Politics of Ethnicity, Religion, and Nationalism. Key Texts: Scott M. Thomas, Foreword by Desmond Tutu, The Global Resurgence of Religiion and the Transformation of International Relations (Palgreave, 2005); Daniel Philpott, Revolutions of Sovereignty: How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations (Princeton, 2001); Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, The Politics of Secularism in International Relations (Princeton, 2007); Jeff Haynes, An Introduction to International Relations and Religion (Longman, 2007); Douglas Johnson and Cynthia Sampson, Foreword by Jimmy Carter (ed.) Religion, the Missing Dimension of Statecraft (Oxford, 1994); Douglas Johnson, Foreword by Lee Hamilton (ed.), Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik (Oxford, 2003). |