The departure of the UK from the EU and political debates surrounding the election of important leaders including Trump in the US, are important reminders of the role ideas and political leaders have in shaping the global order.
Social media, globalisation, and populism are all having a significant impact on the stability of the international world system and the leaders behind these movements play a critical role in defining their impact on international politics.
This course places these changes in a broader historical context, examining the evolution of the global order across the last several centuries. Focusing on some of the world's most influential thinkers and leaders from Smith to Keynes; from Elizabeth I to Gandhi, you will examine how historically important ideas ascended, the leaders that defined these orders, and the interaction between the two.
Considering both the impact on international security and international political economy, you will be asked to grapple with important questions such as: What role do ideas play in international relations and do circumstances determine which ideas and which leaders come to the fore? As a result, by the end of the course you will have developed the capacity to analyse international relations generally and gain a deeper knowledge of several of the canonical cases that continue to influence the study and practice of international politics today.
