Park International Relations
Park International Relations
short essay: answer 3 out of 5, choose any. 250-400 words per question
1) Identify and discuss the primary elements of a realist approach to international relations (you may discuss realism/classical realism and/or neo-realism). How useful is realism in helping us to understand international relations? Provide examples of two things from the past ten years that realism can (if you are positive toward realism) or cannot (if you are negative toward it) help us understand.
2) Write an essay that is critical of at least two of the policies or institutions typically associated with “economic globalization.” Discuss why these policies or institutions might not work and/or might have various negative consequences.
3) The “democratic peace” can be defined as the idea that two democracies are less likely than other pairings of countries to go to war with one another. What are the various explanations for the democratic peace? Make sure to discuss explanations that are supportive of this idea of a distinct “democratic peace” as well as those that are critical of it.
4) Which international organization, the United Nations (UN) or the European Union (EU), most closely resembles a state? (You must pick one of them; you cannot answer “neither” or “both.”) What institutions does it have, and what functions does it perform, that mirror those of a typical state or country?
5) There have been many efforts at arms control from the end of World War II to the present. In general, would you say these arms control efforts have been successful? Why or why not? Make sure to mention at least three different arms control agreements.
long essay: answer any 1 out of 2. 350-550 words
6) Throughout each week of this course, we have learned about many of the core features and institutions of international relations since World War II. Discuss at least three of these features or institutions that are currently under threat. Which is most threatened – that is, least likely to exist in its current form for much longer – and why?
7) For hundreds of years, a fundamental concept in international relations has been the idea of state sovereignty; that is, that states can control affairs within their borders without interference by others. Identify, and discuss the severity of, at least three potential challenges to state sovereignty (they can be current, or something that has occurred within the past 25 years). Which of these poses the biggest threat to state sovereignty and why?
