Critical International Relations Theories in East Asia
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Published: 2019
Language: eng
Number of pages: 166
ISBN-13: 9780815363217
Subjects: International relations; East and west; World politics; East asia, foreign relations; East asia, politics and government
Description: "What do we study when we study International Relations (IR)? This book interrogates the meanings of the established ontology and subjectivity embedded in the discourse of 'Western' and 'non-Western' IR. We are predisposed to see a nation-state as a unified entity, everlasting and moving towards a particular end. This leads us to say, for example, 'Japan is threatened by the possible Chinese attack' without questioning what 'Japan' and 'China' mean in this context. This book tries to locate and unearth the consistent structure and system of the world, with a particular focus on subjectivity and temporality in IR, that captures the way in which we conceive and misconceive the world. The contributors reveal the extent to which contemporary IR discourses are a part of the culture of linear progress and pre-given autonomous sovereign individuals. Our targets of inquiry therefore inevitably include not only 'Western' IR but 'non-Western' discourses as well. The contributors focus on the fluid identities of contemporary world affairs with special attention to temporality, and strive to develop a new approach to understanding the contemporary world and the meanings of world affairs"--