Knowledge and power in world politics

How does power operate in world politics? What is the relationship between power and knowledge about world politics? This unit introduces you to debates in the discipline of International Relations that focus on epistemological questions (or how we know what we know). You will examine foundational, critical, post-structuralist, feminist and post-colonial approaches to knowledge and power within the discipline and explore their implications for key contemporary issues such as the rise of China and the legacies of colonialism. Contending theoretical perspectives offer different possibilities for interpreting politics and acting politically. The unit aims to develop your critical awareness of the relationship between the politics of knowledge and our options for political practice.