Postgraduate masterclass: Pacifism and critical international political theory in a time of genocide and war

The international system is currently experiencing high levels of military violence. The Ukraine invasion, US-supported genocide in Palestine, NATO rearmament, arms races, great power rivalry and other regional conflicts are challenging the stability and security of the global order – and subsequently posing challenges to core concepts and theories in international relations, including legitimacy, just war theory, the utility of violence, and international order. This masterclass will examine the contributions of pacifism as a critical-normative theory of IR, and explore why it remains marginalised in international theory, what it can offer that other theories cannot, and what challenges are posed by current events, including the genocide in Palestine.

Preparatory work 

Ahead of the masterclass, participants are expected to read the following two texts:

- Jackson, Richard, (2018). ‘Pacifism: The Anatomy of a Subjugated Knowledge’, Critical Studies on Security, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 160-175.

- Christoyannopoulos, Alexandre (2022). ‘An Anarcho-Pacifist Reading of International Relations: A Normative Critique of International Politics from the Confluence of Pacifism and Anarchism’, International Studies Quarterly, vol. 66, no. 4, pp. 1-13.

Participants are also requested to send 1-2 questions in advance regarding the two texts that can serve as the basis for discussion. Please send the question(s) by Sunday 5 October at 5pm (GMT) to cript.group@bisa.ac.uk with the subject title 'CRIPT Pacifism Masterclass Questions', also including your name in the body of the email so that the instructor might call on you during the masterclass to raise your question.

This masterclass is open to interested MA and PhD students.

Instructor

Richard Jackson (University of Otago).