Verified Document

Importance Of Gender In International Relations Essay

Related Topics:

One of the major issues that have characterized international relations (IR) discourse is the role and significance of gender.  Steans (2006) states that gender issues in international relations (IR) are usually very controversial and highly political.  The controversy associated with this issue is attributable to the fact that gender IR is an increasingly political issue.  This paper focuses on examining the role and significance of gender in international relations given the increased controversy and politics surrounding it.  This paper demonstrates that gender is an important issue in IR, especially with the increased role of men and women in world politics.  The first part shows that gender relations are crucial in international law and politics.  The second part shows that incorporating both genders in IR discourse helps in establishing fair social policies and inclusive peace strategies.  The third part will demonstrate that gender plays a major role in formulating policy agenda in international relations.  The paper concludes that gender is important in IR in terms of formulation of policy agenda, international law and politics, and development of inclusive peace strategies and social policies.

Role and Significance of Gender in IR



 As previously indicated, gender has become a major issue in international relations discourse as highlighted in the increased controversies that have dominated international politics.  Gender is significant in international relations for various reasons or ways including…

Gender Relations in International Law and Politics



The first way with which gender is important in international relations is through its role in international law and politics.  Shiraev & Zubok (2015) states a feminist perspective demonstrates that gender relations play a crucial role in international law and politics.  For a long period of time, international law and politics has been exclusively centered on masculinity through emphasis on power, use of force, and eventual war.  During this period, the values and expectations of...
 However, significant progress in past century towards the establishment of a legal framework for gender equality, humanitarian issues and civil rights has changed this trend.  Modern international law and politics has focused on protecting the rights of women given that they are usually the most commonly affected people during social and ethnic conflicts.  As international law and politics has become increasingly dominated by the need to safeguard women’s values and expectations, gender relations have taken center stage in international relations discourse.
The emerging feminist perspective in international relations has placed women at the center of international law and politics (Buskie, 2013).  This perspective highlights how women are affected by existing structures and behaviors in the international system and legislative framework.  This information is in turn utilized to explore and develop ways through which international relations theory and discourse is restructured in a gender-neutral manner.  Gender relations play an important role in international politics issues like global economy and war.  In the recent past, there have been numerous efforts to develop various IR bodies that focus on theoretical and substantive research relating to women (Youngs, 2004).

Establishment of Social Policies and Inclusive Peace Strategies



Secondly, incorporating gender in international relations is viewed as a crucial element towards establishing fair social policies and inclusive peace strategies (Ivanov, 2012).  Men have traditionally acted as the major perpetrators and negotiators of peace and war in international relations.  On the other hand, women and children have suffered the most in any social, political and ethnic conflicts.  Additionally, while women and children have suffered the most, women are under-represented in peace mediation efforts.  Gender plays an important role in IR through ensuring women are well represented in social policy measures and peace strategies.  Through consideration of gender, international relations…

Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Gender and International Relations International
Words: 10127 Length: 30 Document Type: Research Paper

57). Coker's article (published in a very conservative magazine in England) "reflected unease among some of his colleagues" about that new course at LSEP. Moreover, Coker disputes that fact that there is a female alternative to male behavior and Coker insists that "Whether they love or hate humanity, feminists seem unable to look it in the face" (Smith quoting Coker, p. 58). If feminists are right about the female nature being

International Relations Making Poverty History
Words: 3082 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

(Suarez-Orozco & Qin-Hilliard, 2004, p. 62) Nonetheless, even promoting universal primary education can interfere with the profit-making motives of multinationals and global finance. Achieving universal primary education is a double-edged sword. Though highly conducive to future economic development in low-income nations, it is an extremely expensive proposition for the wealthier nations. The World Bank itself revealed in 2002 that the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals of halving poverty

Lying in International Relations
Words: 1454 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Lying in International Relations What are your thoughts on lying in international relations? International relations can be a very complicated issue and the relationships can be tenuous and easily broken if not handled correctly. The importance of a solid relationship cannot be underestimated. Countries with which a nation has a good relationship will be a source of economic support in terms of trade and lending of funds, a sharer of technological progression,

International Developments in Corporate Governance
Words: 8350 Length: 30 Document Type: Thesis

For example, Shu-Acquaye (2007) cites the basic differences in the legal systems in various parts of the world as contributing to the different approaches to corporate governance. Likewise, Shu-Acquaye cites these differences and adds, "The American corporate governance system adheres to the idea of shareholder primacy. Because the United Kingdom, Austria, and Canada share a legal system based on English common law and equity principles, they are similar to

Gendered Managerial Styles the Role
Words: 3258 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

Gender and Organizational Social Change Models The increasing number of women in managerial positions represents a social change. Women are in these positions, and must earn their way to be accepted by both males and females. There are other changes within organizational styles that may be impacted by the entrance of more female managers into the workplace. For instance, the older authoritarian styles of the early part of the century are

Gender and the Fashion Industry:
Words: 1943 Length: 6 Document Type: Term Paper

Also, all women must be pressed to ask why they seek to embody the female ideal of beauty, and are willing to sacrifice so much to do so. Even if the fashion industry were to ban all models wholesale beneath a BMI of 18.5, while male chauvinists might delight in the curves of the models gyrating on the catwalks of Milan, the ideals held up for women to fulfill

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now