Dr K Dalacoura, CLM. 4.11

Course intended primarily for MSc International Relations, MSc International Relations (Research), MSc International Relations Theory and MSc Human Rights. Also available to students taking MSc International Relations as part of the LSE-Sciences Po Double Degree in Affaires Internationales programme. Open to other interested students where degree regulations permit.

All students are required to obtain permission from the Teacher Responsible by completing the online application form linked to course selection on LSE for You. Admission is not guaranteed.

Background in International Relations or a related discipline.

Approaches to understanding the role of culture and religion in the discipline of IR. Culture and religion in IR theory; their influence on the practice of international relations. Case study: Islam.

The course will be divided into two parts. In the first part, the contribution of a number of international relations theories to our understanding of culture and religion will be explored. The focus here will be on the English School and constructivism; critical theory and post-modernism; liberalism and communitarianism. The second part of the course will examine the role that cultural and religious issues play in the practice of international relations and in particular their influence on international norms, foreign policy, conflict and negotiation, war and intervention, aid and development.

Course commences week 1 of MT. Fifteen lectures, (10 in MT, 5 in LT, plus 1 revision lecture in week 1 of ST); sixteen one-and-a-half hour seminars (10 in MT, 6 in LT and one revision seminar in week 1 of ST ).

Students will be expected to write three 2,000 word essays by dates stipulated by their seminar leader.

A detailed reading list will be available on line and in printed form well before the first lecture/seminar. Useful surveys and introductions are: Bruce Lawrence, Defenders of God: The Fundamentalist Revolt against the Modern Age, I. B. Tauris, 1990; Fabio Patito and Pavlos Hatzopoulos (eds), Religion in International Relations: The Return from Exile, Palgrave Macmillan 2003; Yosef Lapid and Friedrich Kratochwil (eds), The Return of Culture and Identity in IR Theory, Lynne Rienner, 1997; Jongsuk Chay (ed.), Culture and International Relations, Praeger, 1990; K. R. Dark (ed.), Religion and International Relations, Macmillan, 2000; Dominique Jacquin-Berdal, Andrew Oros and Marco Verweij (eds), Culture in World Politics, St. Martin's Press, 1990.

One three-hour unseen examination in the ST (100%).