In the undeniable patriarchy of the modern world it could be argued that with an increase in female participation in positions of power and influence there would inherently be an increase in world peace. This statement is multifaceted and riddled with a huge lack of empirical data due to only 20% of the world’s political leaders being female. Though with limited data, it can be seen that gender plays no real influence on how a leader will lead a state, and therefor has no play on whether a leader will be more peaceful. This essay intends to argue this idea through; the prevalence in the inevitability of states and war, the fact that there is already a continuing exponential decrease in war and violence in the world unrelated to gender and the idea that sex does not genetically instill in us personality traits.
War is an inevitability of human nature and international peace does not relate to the gender of the leaders of the world. Women in power will still act within the states best interest and are not confined to the preconception that women have an “affinity for peace” . Realist theory suggests that the international system is anarchic and an attempt to obtain or even promote world peace would be an act in futility. In an international system with no global hegemon, states are free to act within the states best interest driven by the demand for power and state survival . From Cleopatra and her funding of the roman military campaigns to Helen Clark providing troops for the war in Afghanistan, globally, female leaders have played some part in the disharmony of the world. In April 1982, under the hand of Margaret Thatcher, Britain was lead to war with Argentina to defend British sovereignty. After 10 weeks and almost 100...
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...l Leadership Inspire,”
“Stanford Presidential Lectures: Mary Robinson.” Stanford Presidential Lectures in the Humanities and Arts, Accessed 13 May, 2012, http://prelectur.stanford.edu/lecturers/robinson/
Coy, Peter, Elizabeth Dwoskin. "Shortchanged: Why Women Get Paid Less Than Men." Bloomberg Business Week (2012): Accessed May 15, 2014.
Eliot Smith, Jeffry Simpson, “When sex goes wrong.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 106, No. 5 2012
Pinker Steven, The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined (London: Penguin Group, 2011), 23
Charlotte Hooper, Manly States: Masculinities Relations, and, International Gender Politics (New York: Columbia University Press, 1999)
World Economic Forum, Global Gender Gap Report (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2014)
Saunders Malcolm, Are women more peaceful than men? (Armidale: Routledge, 2002)
Native American’s place in United States history is not as simple as the story of innocent peace loving people forced off their lands by racist white Americans in a never-ending quest to quench their thirst for more land. Accordingly, attempts to simplify the indigenous experience to nothing more than victims of white aggression during the colonial period, and beyond, does an injustice to Native American history. As a result, historians hoping to shed light on the true history of native people during this period have brought new perceptive to the role Indians played in their own history. Consequently, the theme of power and whom controlled it over the course of Native American/European contact is being presented in new ways. Examining the evolving
The article by Laura McEnaney titled Gender Analysis and Foreign Relations is an interesting article focused on a relatively new type of analysis that offers another angle in the world of policymaking. The diplomatic historians who use gender analysis use it in addition to the customary methodologies of the historian to enhance the historian’s studies. Gender analysis has inspired new investigations in the history of men and women and diplomacy, giving way to a new type of understanding of power in a historical context; however gender analysis “enters diplomatic history only through the aegis of culture.”
...ncine D., and Lawrence M. Kahn. "The Gender Pay Gap: Have Women Gone as Far as
Why do women still earn less than men? : Monthly Labor Review. (n.d.). Retrieved November 13, 2017, from
Women often are put in positions that often create turmoil within themselves. Women tend to make decisions based more on emotion and values as opposed to what is dictated by governing laws and rulers. By choosing to do what is “right in their heart” women often suffer great consequences such as persecution, abuse, exile and even death.
The contribution of the feminist standpoint in IR theory definitely sparks discussion and debate bringing forth new perspectives which demand to be heard and considered from the more ‘orthodox’ IR theories, previously privileged assumptions and preconceived ideas. This grand entry for the feminists was towards the denouement of the Cold War in the 1980’s , Kirkpatrick; influential US ambassador of the UN during that period was noted to have said that she felt like a “mouse in a man’s world”. Is this still the case with women worldwide and particularly in the West? Tickner’s groundbreaking work set the foundation and key to early feminist IR. Whilst simultaneously interrogating the core issues in mainstream IR, particularly in peace and security, contingent on feminist bases for gendered grasp of issues that have defined it. In this essay we will firstly try to identify and comment on the emergence of feminism within IR in the 80’s. Secondly, we will pin-point and analyze which contributions were of the greatest importance, predominantly via Tickner and Keohane. Finally we will look at the impact and importance of the different types of feminist theories and whether or not they have achieved at enriching our understanding of IR theory.
Throughout time, there have been certain influential individuals that have dominated their age and have forever marked that era with their name. Among them are Cleopatra, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth, and Nefertiti, with many others. One thing these leaders have in common is their gender: they are all females. In this day and age, it’s a rarity to come across strong, powerful women who have been allowed the opportunity to be powerful. It begs the question, if these women were alive today, would they have the same chance to change the world as they did? However, it’s not only the powerful who feel the sting of sexism, because the misogyny in today’s society affects each and every woman, of every color, age, and shape. The most important lesson to learn for the cultural and societal growth of people is to understand the causes and affects behind anti-feminism. Sexism takes many forms, yet it can be broken down into three main parts: the portrayal of women in media, the oppression of women in society, and the boundaries of women through laws.
Morrison was appointed Robert F. Goheen Professor of the Council of the Humanities at Princeton University in the spring of 1989. Before coming to Princeton, she held teaching posts at Yale University, Bard College, and Rutgers University. In 1990 she delivered the Clark lectures at Trinity College, Cambridge, and the Massey Lectures at Harvard University. Ms.
Blau, F., & Kahn, L. (2007). The Gender Pay Gap: Have Women Gone as far as they can. Academy of Management Perspectives , 21 (1), 7-23.
On September 5, 1995, Hillary Clinton delivered an influential speech at The Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. Clinton expresses general concern over escalating violence toward women, in other word’s gendercide. “Gendercide refers to the systematic elimination of a specific gender group, normally female. It’s most common in India, China, and other regions in Southeast Asia” (GirlsKind Foundation). Crimes, such as bride trafficking, infanticide, abandonment, and dowry related murder; often take place within private households, going unnoticed and not even acknowledged. “Tragically, women are most often the ones whose human rights are violated. Even now, in the late 20th century, the rape of women continues to be used as an instrument of armed conflict Women and children make up a large majority of the world’s refugees” (Clinton 3). By addressing her speech in Beijing, where gendercide is prevalent, Hillary expressed her objective effectively not just the United Nations, but to audiences across the world. Clinton effectively delivered her speech by portraying her purpose for women to achieve equality and better opportunities, with ethical appeals, emotional appeals, and logical appeals.
Carmen, D. (2007) ‘Why do men earn more? Just because’ Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_5735341 (Accessed 17/10/11)
...action with others… especially men. This supplies final substantiation of the authors' argument, that women continue to be oppressed by their male-dominated societies. It is a bold undertaking for women to ally and promote a world movement to abandon sexist traditions. Although I have never lived in a third world or non-Westernized country, I have studied the conditions women suffer as "inferior" to men. In National Geographic and various courses I have taken, these terrible conditions are depicted in full color. Gender inequality is a terrible trait of our global society, and unfortunately, a trait that might not be ready to change. In America we see gender bias towards women in voters' unwillingness to elect more females into high office, and while this is not nearly as severe as the rest of the world, it indicates the lingering practice of gender inequality.
... for granted. Therefore, it is without a doubt that the incorporation of gender would enrich international relations theory. Tickner, in her critique of Morgenthau has attempted to depict the gender-bias prevalent within the field. By building on Morgenthau’s founding principles in political realism and of international politics, Tickner makes an insightful contribution to the field of international relations by challenging pre-existing paradigms. She is open to Morgenthau’s masculine-embedded principles, and does not refute them but ultimately contends that for complete comprehension of international politics, masculine and feminine contributions must be equally represented. Without a feminist perspective, an incomplete picture of international politics is painted. Feminist perspectives improve our analysis, knowledge and understanding of international politics.
“Such an approach helps focus attention on current and emerging threats to the security and well-being of individuals and communities” (UN 2014). Moreover, women are important when it comes to negotiating peace agreements, planning refugee camps, and peacekeeping operations, as well as reconstructing war-torn societies (UNIFEM 2004). A Feminist’s perspective in security studies challenges the focus on military solutions and pushes attention towards addressing structural problems, additionally, they believe in prevention rather than intervention; e.g. civilian solutions rather than military solutions. Feminist’s goals are to resolve issues within the state first. They try to identify the collective needs of the human kind. Human security helps one understand how gender and violence relate. The indication of human security allowed UNIFEM and UN women to work in post-conflict situations which brought people to work together in humanitarian affairs, development, and unquestionably security. Involving more women in International Relations could be a better influence for the world and have positive results but only if both genders