Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Academic essay of international relations
International relations flossary
International relations flossary
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Academic essay of international relations
1. To ‘study’ international relations is to undertake a very broad concept that is both multifaceted and multidisciplinary. International relations involves analysis of the world and its actors to determine why events occur and how they might develop. I will explain the study of international relations in three parts. First, I will discuss the players or actors that international relations scholars study. Second, I will discuss what these scholars seek to achieve. Last, I will cover how the viewpoints of scholars might affect their analysis. International relations is the study of relations between states, but also between states and non-state organizations, and between states and intergovernmental organizations (Wilkinson, Paul 2007, 1). States can be defined as “A political actor that has sovereignty and a number of characteristics, including territory, population, organization, and recognition” (Rourke and Boyer 2010, G–11). Non-state organizations can be defined as non-profit organizations, such as churches or Red Cross. A good example of an intergovernmental organization, an organization whose members have international presence, would be the United Nations. Since international relations is such a dynamic concept, more players are introduced all the time. For instance, multinational corporations are corporations which have branches in other countries, such Nissan or Exxon are rising to such significance that they are studied as actors as well. Scholars that study international relations seek to achieve a considerable amount. International relations scholars seek to make generalizations of a historical period (Yetiv,Steve 2011, 97). These scholars also seek to apply theories to world events, for instance, asking what the... ... middle of paper ... ...istan’s chaotic society lead its leadership to just try to maintain some form of normalcy. I think that the dominance that the U.S. is used to having and the angry society it needed to please drove the decision to infiltrate Pakistan. These events have brought us to where we are today. Works Cited Layne, Christopher. 2012. “This Time It’s Real: The End of Unipolarity and the Pax Americana.” International Studies Quarterly 56: 203–213. Rourke, John T, and Mark A Boyer. 2010. International Politics on the World Stage. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education Wilkinson, Paul. 2007. International relations: A very short introduction. Oxford, GBR: Oxford University Press, UK. Yetiv, Steve. 2011. “History, International Relations, and Integrated Approaches: Thinking About Greater Interdisciplinarity.” International Studies Perspectives 12: 94–118
A. The "International Politics" Essay, International Business St. Louis University, 1996. Mosier, Mike. A great idea. The Self as I See It.
New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. Shiraev, Eric B., and Vladislav M. Zubok. International Relations. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014. Silver, Larry.
Edkins, Jenny, and Maja Zehfuss. Global Politics: A New Introduction. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2009. Print.
Mearsheimer J. J. (2010). Structural Realism. International Relations Thoeries, Discipline and Diversity (Second Edition), p.77-94
Understanding the World ‘We’ Live in’, International Affairs, Vol. 80, No. I, (2004) pp. 75-87.
Wendt, Alexander. “Constructing International Politics.” International Security. Cambridge: President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1995. 71-81. Print.
Frieden, Jeffry A., David A. Lake, and Kenneth A. Schultz. World Politics. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2013. Print.
Schmidt, B. C. (2007). Realism and facets of power in international relations. In F. Berenskoetter & M. J. D. Williams (Eds.), Power in world politics (pp. 43-63). London: Routledge.
Balaam, David. Introduction to International Political Economy, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, Pearson Education, 2005.
People’s ideas and assumptions about world politics shape and construct the theories that help explain world conflicts and events. These assumptions can be classified into various known theoretical perspectives; the most dominant is political realism. Political realism is the most common theoretical approach when it is in means of foreign policy and international issues. It is known as “realpolitik” and emphasis that the most important actor in global politics is the state, which pursues self-interests, security, and growing power (Ray and Kaarbo 3). Realists generally suggest that interstate cooperation is severely limited by each state’s need to guarantee its own security in a global condition of anarchy. Political realist view international politics as a struggle for power dominated by organized violence, “All history shows that nations active in international politics are continuously preparing for, actively involved in, or recovering from organized violence in the form of war” (Kegley 94). The downside of the political realist perspective is that their emphasis on power and self-interest is their skepticism regarding the relevance of ethical norms to relations among states.
Mingst, K. (2011). Essentials of international relations. (5th ed., p. 70). New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.
Whenever world politics is mentioned, the state that appears to be at the apex of affairs is the United States of America, although some will argue that it isn’t. It is paramount we know that the international system is shaped by certain defining events that has lead to some significant changes, particularly those connected with different chapters of violence. Certainly, the world wars of the twentieth century and the more recent war on terror must be included as defining moments. The warning of brute force on a potentially large scale also highlights the vigorousness of the cold war period, which dominated world politics within an interval of four decades. The practice of international relations (IR) was introduced out of a need to discuss the causes of war and the different conditions for calm in the wake of the first world war, and it is relevant we know that this has remained a crucial focus ever since. However, violence is not the only factor capable of causing interruption in the international system. Economic elements also have a remarkable impact. The great depression that happened in the 1920s, and the global financial crises of the contemporary period can be used as examples. Another concurrent problem concerns the environment, with the human climate being one among different number of important concerns for the continuing future of humankind and the planet in general.
The international system is an anarchical system which means that, unlike the states, there is no over ruling, governing body that enforces laws and regulations that all states must abide by. The International System in today’s society has become highly influential from a number of significant factors. Some of these factors that will be discussed are Power held by the state, major Wars that have been fought out in recent history and international organisations such as the U.N, NATO and the W.T.O. Each of these factors, have a great influence over the international system and as a result, the states abilities to “freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development”.
Dimitter, Lowell. World Politics. 1st ed. Vol. 55. New York: Johns Hopkins UP, 2002. 38-65.
Baylis, Smith and Patricia Owens. 2014. The globalization of World Politics: An introduction to international relations. London. Oxford University Press.