Diplomacy and war
Section A
1) 1) Explain the concepts of linguistic intractability and radical disagreement. How does this analysis and approach differ from more traditional conflict resolution approaches? What are some of the key issues involved, such as concept of justice? How does this approach impact negotiation strategies and the possibility of conflict resolution? Use examples where appropriate.
See Ramsbotham, Contemporary Conflict Resolution, chapter 18
See also Hall Gardner, IR Theory, Historical Analogy and Major Power War, Chapter 5.
Section B Choose 2 questions out of 3. No Notes
2) 2) Both Gene Sharp and Troy Davis have developed concepts of “radical democracy” and “democracy engineering” that seek to transform dictatorships to democracies. Outline either the views of Sharp or those of Davis, or both, if possible. What do you see as the strengths of the arguments? What are the weaknesses? Use examples where relevant.
Sharp: https://www.aeinstein.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/FDTD.pdf
Troy Davis, Chapter 7, in Gardner and Kobtzeff, The Ashgate Research Companion to War
See also Hall Gardner, in Gardner and Kobtzeff, The Ashgate Research Companion to War, pages 7 to 11.
3) 3) Hall Gardner’s World War Trump makes the argument for the implementation of “regional peace and development communities” involving concepts of “joint sovereignty.” This stems from the article of Chester Crocker, The Place of Grand Strategy, Statecraft and Power in Conflict Management. What is a regional peace and development community? How does it involve “joint sovereignty”? And are such communities feasible? How do such communities rely upon global strategy and a regional and global “equilibrium” of power relationships between major and regional powers?
4) 4) Pick any chapter in Ramsbotham, Contemporary Conflict Resolution that you did not use to prepare for a class discussion (and not including Chapter 18 on linguistic intractability). What are the main points? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the chapter?
Sample Solution
