Theoretical Frameworks of International Relations - Essay Example

Theoretical Frameworks of International Relations International relations attempts to draw intellectual materials not only form political science but a wide range of other study areas like anthropology, philosophy, international law, psychology, geography, and gender studies. It was categorized as a discrete academic field in the early the 20th century and has hitherto influenced education and relations among nations and people in a major way. The field offers explanations on issues related to globalization, nationalism, global economy, human rights, and sustainability among numerous others. The influence of international relations in the society, mainly the application of the IR theories in the aforementioned fields has immensely shaped human existence. The theoretical frameworks within the discipline assist in the explanation of the global activities/events, the identification of the most important international actors, and the different means of exertion of influence from the international platform. Moreover, the IR theories assist nations or heads of states and their foreign policy advisors during the conduction of foreign policy. There exist different IR theories that work towards the presentation of the critical events and happenings around the world. These theories assist governments in the processes of policy making, relations with other governments, and activities that occur among nations. These theories include liberalism, neo-liberalism, classical realism, constructivism, post-structuralism, Marxism, and post-modernism. These are not, however, the only IR theories. While some may be insufficient in the explanation of the aforementioned, there are theories that can be combined to offer an articulate elucidation of global events, government relations and foreign policy, and the issue of power and interaction. Among the outlined theories, liberalism, classical realism, and post structuralism are the most effective in the explanation the contemporary and past experiences in the world, and the actors that exert international influence. In addition, these theories are the most effective in offering heads of states the assistance they need in conducting foreign policy. Liberalism The application of the liberalism theoretical framework of the international theory can offer an articulate explanation of the relations among governments, and major occurrences that involve decisions by the heads of states. The development of theory emanates from the society’s quest to explain the relations through the disregard of classical realism. However, emphasizes on the exploration of the extensive ties that are seen as of great influence on the development and definition of national interests. The ties are argued to be the major influences that reduce the need for nations to continue amassing power by decreasing the essentiality of military power. As such, the theory seeks to explain that the society is bound by ties that enhance the relations among nations, consolidating the relationships for the betterment of the international community as whole, and reducing negative influences among nations. The application of the liberalist ideas can offer a substantial explanation of the occurrences taking place at the present day. The rising trends of globalization, technological advancements, and communication has propelled the free flow of currency. In addition, globalization and increased international trade among other issues make it impossible for governments to concentrate on the accumulation of power alone. As such, liberalism, which argues that the society focuses majorly on the development of ties and relations that are more beneficial to the entire human race rather than concentrating on amassing power critical in today’s society. For instance, in the recent past, organizations such as the United Nations and world powerful countries have concentrated on the promotion of ideas and thoughts that advocate for peace and international unity in the quest to boost relations. This has significantly enhanced international relations as countries focus on the establishment of stronger ties and the development of platforms for enhanced interaction and relations. Therefore, it is arguably true that liberalism is an effective theory that can be applied alongside the classical realism and post structuralism theories to explain world occurrences and international relations effectively. In addition, apart from the argument that military power is not the most significant form of power, liberalism argues that the existence of international rules and the quest for social and economic power are equally important. It can, therefore, be used to explain the existence of different rules that seek to bring about an international understanding and limit the possibility of misunderstanding. Moreover, the theory reveals the importance of economic and social power to any state and their influence on international relations. Therefore, the application of liberalist ideas can explain to contemporary economic dominance of Chin in Africa and several Asian countries. The same economic and social power the U.S. and other western countries depict reveals their influence on international issues. This serves to show the influence such have on international relations. Notwithstanding the military, political, economic, and social power, states have different interests but seek to pursue moral and ethical goals in their quest to achieve them. Liberalism states that as nations focus on the achievement of national interests and goals, the achievement of ethical and moral goals is prioritized. This theoretical framework is the only effective theory for the explanation of the international community’s focus on the establishment of rules that define ethical values in relations. Moreover, the explanation of morality differs from state to state and depends majorly on the local, national, and international culture. However, governments often engage in unethical behavior in their pursuit of national interests. This offers a basis for the explanation of certain occurrences using the theory of classical realism. Classical Realism Like liberalism, classical realism acknowledges the importance of power in a world that is harsh and unjust. However, unlike the theory of liberalism, classical realism assumes that power is the only certain thing for the development of the state, and the assurance of its security and existence. This can explain the trend of struggle for world dominance by different states. For instance, the quest for world dominance resulted in the development of the Cold War. Moreover, years after the end of the War, the U.S. and Russia alongside others continue to strive for the establishment of strong military. As both countries continue to develop weapons their accumulation of nuclear weapons and the development of military power remains a long searched quest. Apart from this, other countries like North Korea spend more than three-quarters of its national budget on military and creation of effective weapons. All this is triggered by the struggle for power that emanates from developed and well-equipped military. This is the case elsewhere and reveals the effectiveness of the classical realism theory in the explanation of such events and international relations in general. The theory of classical realism points out states as the most important actors that continually strive to survive and pursue self-interests with the desire to acquire and maintain massive resources as possible. The application of the theory can, therefore, offer an articulate analysis of the influence of states, and how their struggle survival, increase of resources, and maintenance of influence affect international relations. The scramble for Africa in the past decades revealed the desire by states to amass resources and maintain control over other states. While this is the case, the continued exploration of natural resources in different states shows that each country, developed or developing, strive to acquire as many resources as possible. This is also in the quest to survive that neoclassical realism cites as important for any country. As a theory, neoclassical realism can be applied in the same case as classical realism in this context as it also holds on states’ struggle for self-interests and for survival. As states focus on development through amassing of resources and the promotion of self-interests, the issue of ethics and morality is often compromised. Colonialism and neo-colonialism are some of the events that depict the height to which politically and economically powerful states can go to protect their interests. The exploitation of other countries and their resources is an evident factor that classical realism explains. As such states depict the application of unethical behavior, there seems to be no an overall power to combat the issues. In addition, international organizations/law to some extent seems to have no meaningful power over certain states and activities. For instance, some countries engage in the issues of other sovereign states and exploit them for personal benefit without the involvement of the international organizations or the observance of the law. On the other hand, neoclassical realism views the international system, like classical realism, as anarchic and in control of most but holds that every state is sovereign, thus equal to any other. This is the same principle held the world over. The international law emphasizes on sovereignty and the protection of rights of each country. This means that in the engagement in international relations, every state must be treated as an equal to all others and with the respect it deserves. However, the breach of different laws determines the extent of the relations with others states in the international community. Nevertheless, according to the theoretical framework, states are not similar or equal in terms of their needs, but not in capabilities. This is because different countries have different capabilities and hence their different categorization. Post-structuralism Post-structuralism is a criticism of science based on epistemological and ideological arguments, both of which are rooted in subjectivity. From the viewpoint of post-structuralism, objective truth remains an illusion, which the school of thought critiques and holds with contempt. Also, the epistemological arguments of the human object and mainly anthropology cannot, therefore, be a science due to the existence of the subjectivity of the human subject. The subjectivity is viewed as a deterrent of the objective truth through science. Additionally, post-structuralism holds that the illusion of objectivity threatens the existence and progressiveness of oppressed groups, minority ethnic groups, women, and developing countries. As such, the influence of the theory of international relations is undeniable, as it tackles the major issues in the society today such as gender, oppression, and the exploitation of developing countries. As a theoretical formulation of postmodernism, post-structuralism places emphasis on the criticism of the earlier existing structural theories of human existence. In the so doing, theorists and propagators of post-structuralism embrace and focus on the enhancement of ideas encompassing of intellectual developments of the 20th century by continental and French scholars and philosophers. Through the criticism of the structural theories, post-structuralists offer distinct responses to structuralism and theories therein. The existence of the human race and her culture, the practices, and beliefs therein can only be understood through structures incorporated in the study through a series of signs and symbols. However, these theorists/philosophers held to the fact that such can only be achieved through an extensive focus on language. This language is mainly modeled distinctly from the organizations of classical realism and imaginations, and most importantly from the organization of ideas. As such, this theoretical framework can be used to explain the influence of culture and the different religious beliefs on international relations. Read More