Global Voices: Dialogues in International Relations

Who are these characters--Westfem and SAR, Tsitsi and SUKA, Mother Courage, SICC, and GORP--and what do they have to say about the state of contemporary international affairs? For a painless yet provocative introduction to some of the most ponderous issues in world politics today, consider this book of dialogues written by leading lights in international relations research, covering everything from the New World Order to the role of postmodernism in constructing an answer to the deconstruction of the Soviet Union. Global Voices develops as five different "dialoguers" spin out exchanges between and among such protagonists as the archetypal Senior American Researcher, his British and feminist counterparts, a thoughtful young Western feminist, her Third World alter ego, a concerned (but skeptical) citizen, and a set of postmodern personae as elusive as quicksilver. Youth and age, male and female, realist and idealist, science and art, Western and Third World--all find their voices represented here.Between the scenes, the characters' defenses come down along with the Berlin Wall, and the dialogues unravel in tandem with American hegemony, the Soviet republics, and gender-bound visions of "reality." This entertaining survey of issues, theory, and controversy in international relations is appropriate for readers both inside and outside the discipline, and is perfect for students who want to "listen in" on conversations that are reshaping the contours of international political thought as well as action.