/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.12282343]

My international relations program ( and the field in general) is being drowned in navel-gazing constructivist nonsense. What are some recent must-read books on international politics that are actually insightful and relevant, instead of just rehashes of critical theory applied to IR?
Pic related was the last I read, 10/10

[Anonymous No.12282352]

>>12282343
>needing others' input
Look, if you can't materialize your own theories and models, you're not gonna cut it in this field. Fuck books, fuck studies, and, most importantly, fuck history. Start thinking for yourself and not just rewriting something and calling it your own.

[Anonymous No.12282361]

>>12282343
son, all you need to know about politics is that you lose with jews and that you shouldn't relax around blacks. *sips*

[Anonymous No.12282379]

>>12282361
It's okay to put a little thought into this. A literal meme generator could have written this garbage.

[Anonymous No.12282385]

>>12282352
That is unironically the retardedest thing I've ever read on /lit/. Thanks

[Anonymous No.12282711]

I have some gripes with this book, but it makes enough valid points to be worth reading regardless of your politics or if you view yourself as a nationalist.

[Anonymous No.12282716]

>>12282711
>nationalism
>hazony
This book makes me feel conflicted. Is the entire thing a treatise on why Israel should exist?

[Anonymous No.12282763]

>>12282343
I'm thinking of getting an International Relations degree, what country and university are you taking it? What do you mean specifically by navel-gazing constructivist nonsense? Are any of the things you learn empirically verifiable and scientific?

[Anonymous No.12282914]

>>12282343
The Hell of Good Intentions: America's Foreign Policy Elite and the Decline of U.S. Primacy by Stephen Walt just came out and it's a pretty good defense of realism

[Anonymous No.12282974]

>>12282343
I'm always surprised when I hear these horror stories from other people studying IR. I have only one teacher who is a constructivist and everyone else is a classical realist/neorealist. Considering realism is so grounded and no nonsense, I'm shocked there are universities that prefer to focus on other branches

[Anonymous No.12283080]

>>12282974
Do you study in America? It might be because most of my teachers are European/ studied in Europe. My War Peace teacher was this badass old Japan Self Defense force officer who's father was a war criminal and he was totally no-nonsense.
>>12282763
I did 2 years in Japan and have 2 more in Korea. Looking for a good masters program in either USA or UK. Most of the problem with the new material that I've seen is it's just applying critical perspectives to IR for easy work that widens the topic but doesn't deepen it (what can feminist theory tell us about international security? The state of anarchy doesn't matter because people perceive it differently…IR is western-centric and fetishizes but also ignores the east/ global south)

[Anonymous No.12283084]

>>12282914
I've seen this title. Will read it, thanks anon

[Anonymous No.12283140]

>>12282716
>Is the entire thing a treatise on why Israel should exist?
No, thankfully it's not.

[Anonymous No.12283834]