Articulated within the emergence of the European nation-state and born in the context of the First World War and its aftermath, the discursive field of International Relations is organized around the constitutive concepts of conflict, anarchy, power, system, rule, law, and justice, and the practices of civil society and political economy. These concepts and practices organize, in turn, both the major schools of International Relations theory and contemporary methodological pluralism. This course interrogates these founding concepts from a philosophical perspective within the historical and discursive context of each major school: 1) from classical liberalism to international liberalism; 2) from classical realism to modern realism; 3) the ‘English School’ of IR theory (Bull); 4) Marxist tenets within international relations (from Karl Marx to international political economy); 5) Modern and Contemporary Critical Liberalism (Polanyi and Held); 6) The philosophical grounds of contemporary Constructivism.
| Room | Day | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|---|
C-104 | Monday | 12:10 | 13:30 |
C-104 | Thursday | 12:10 | 13:30 |
This course focuses on the concept of the/a public. Discusses how media and political actors rhetorically constitute the public; how they (and occasionally governments) constitute “public spaces”(virtual and material) in which public discourse takes place, and how institutional and technological forces constitute “public opinion” and articulate “the public interest.” On the other hand, we will consider how political economy of media and social practices facilitate or stifle spaces, political actors, and publics. The course will also compare contemporary manifestations of public-making with Habermas’s theory of the public sphere, which he thought was an area of social life vital to a legitimate democracy. The potentiality, control, and use of new communication technologies are explored in relation to the existence and future of a global public sphere.
| Room | Day | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|---|
G-002 | Monday | 10:35 | 11:55 |
G-002 | Thursday | 10:35 | 11:55 |
This course will examine the existing international legal framework for the protection of women’s rights and contrast the law with the nearly universal perception that the world of women is a private sphere, one where laws made in the public realm have less weight, or are more difficult to implement due to lack of witnesses, or worse, community acceptance of certain types of gender-based violence. But activists are making progress across the globe in combating insufficient implementation of women’s rights. This course will explore their remarkably innovative strategies to achieve conflict resolution and the protection of women in challenging circumstances.
| Room | Day | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|---|
C-104 | Tuesday | 09:00 | 10:20 |
C-104 | Friday | 09:00 | 10:20 |
In the last semester of their studies students are required to complete a 20,000 word thesis. Additional paperwork available in the office of the Registrar is MANDATORY for registration of the thesis.
In the last semester of their studies students are required to complete a 20,000 word thesis. Additional paperwork available in the office of the Registrar is MANDATORY for registration of the thesis.
Internships are commonly pursued in non-governmental organizations, international development networks or research institutes, but can also be completed in a variety of other institutions depending on students’ interests and initiative. The University cannot guarantee placement in an internship, but will provide assistance with the internship search. Students must have completed their first semester of MA studies and should contact the Internship Office early for registration purposes.
This seminar is required for all students in their final semester of classes in the MAIA program. It is designed to instruct them in the appropriate methodology for the actual writing of the thesis. During the course of the semester students will be personally guided as they choose their thesis topic and will create an outline and abstract in preparation for their research and/or fieldwork.
| Room | Day | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|---|
SD-3 | Wednesday | 10:35 | 11:55 |