In this text-centered seminar, we will discuss seminal contributions to the ethics of migration, which has become a cottage industry in political and moral philosophy over the last few decades. We know that in many places borders are not open, but ought they to be so from a moral point of view? Or does this depend on the circumstances? If so, which circumstances matter and why? Do states that restrict immigration (by certain groups of people) violate human rights (and how would we know that)? Or do they merely exercise the right of self-determination of the political community they represent? These are the kinds of questions that we will raise in this seminar, after paving the ground by looking at some conceptual, empirical, and theoretical issues in the initial meetings.

Preparatory Reading

Wellman, Christopher Heath (2022): Immigration. In: Zalta, Edward N./Nodelman, Uri (eds.): The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2022 Edition). Available at: https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2022/entries/immigration [Accessed 11 February 2023].

Credits

6 CP (GPL/TP 1): term paper (15-20 pp.) or oral exam (30 min.)

3 CP (MPL/TP 2): presentation (15 min.) with written elaboration (5 pp.) or short term paper (8-10 pp.)

The unit produces a variety of contemporary feminist perspectives to re-think international relations. By applying gender as an analytical framework, it will reveal how social relations of masculinity and femininity, of gender identities and sexualities, are implicated in political, military, economic, and ecological developments. The objective is to demonstrate how a feminist perspective changes and expands our view of the ways in which power structures are (re) produced in contemporary politics. As students are presented with empirical cases of critical theories in international relations, the unit aims to provoke dialogues on the (im) possibilities of building different power arrangements within the system.

This course aims to bring more nuance to the study of IR and traditional IR concepts by looking at what the “global turn” has brought to the table. Global IR presents non-Western insights and knowledge practices when conceptualizing the international sphere and world politics. By looking at traditional IR concepts through these lenses, we will seek to better understand the context of the creation of the discipline of IR and its legacies on how we frame our world. This course is an attempt to decolonize our gaze and achieve a more critical, diverse and engaged understanding of world history and current processes.

This seminar is designed for students who are interested in understanding and explaining trends and instances of China being an emerging global actor in international politics. We will engage with conceptual approaches and discuss China-led multilateralism, economic diplomacy, the Belt and Road Initiative, and scholarly debates on “the rise of China”. Regionally diverse interpretations will help you to develop a more nuanced understanding of the implications of China’s increasing global importance. We will then discuss China’s relations with selected countries and regions, such as China’s neighborhood policy with East Asian countries, the strategic triangle with the United States and Russia, the role of territorial integrity, and the European Union’s approach of referring to China as a “strategic rival”. Selected case studies, such as on global climate change cooperation and China’s global investments into the digital economy will be used to examine the freshly-acquired conceptual knowledge and to critically discuss challenges related to contemporary world politics. Ultimately, you will gain a basic understanding of how China’s current approaches to international relations relate to its historical experiences. By the end of the semester, you will be able to develop your own assessment of China’s engagement with the world and break up a view of China being a unitary actor by considering domestic political structures, actor constellations and guiding interests. The seminar prepares you to ask and answer academic questions related to “the rise of China”, enhances your soft skills of debating and academic research, and allows you to explore avenues for future career development.

Preparatory reading
Westad, OA 2020, ‘Legacies of the Past’, in D Shambaugh (ed.), China and the World, Oxford University Press, New York, pp. 25-36.
Zhao, S 2020, ‘China’s Foreign Policy Making Process: Players and Institutions’, in D Shambaugh (ed.), China and the World, Oxford University Press, New York, pp. 85-112.
Credits
6 CP: term paper (15-20 pp.) or oral exam (30 min.)
3 CP: presentation (15 min.) with written elaboration (5 pp.) or short term paper (8-10 pp.)

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Computerraum wird benötigt