Liberalism and Transformation: The Politics of Violence and Intervention
A Synopsis
My book project reconstructs a history of international liberalism, focusing on the ways that theorists, policymakers, and publics have negotiated the problem of violence and intervention. I argue that a strand of liberal ideology, what I have termed emancipatory liberalism, has a long, and complicated, historical connection with violence and intervention in word politics. Emancipatory liberalism is a paternalist liberalism with an understanding of the liberal project as a universal one: requiring the fortunate and enlightened to “save” those who are in trouble. This book draws out the effects of emancipatory liberalism, its interaction with institutions of force, and the interplay between practices of violence on the ground and the discourses of liberty that give rise to them. This book illustrates the intertwined history of violence and emancipatory liberalism to illustrate the connections between ideology, culture, discourse, and intervention in international society.
This book is also about discourses and their power in international history. Discourses influence the way that states act and create the space for actors to interpret their positions, practices, and beliefs about the world. Emancipatory liberalism does this in three ways. First, it structures justifications for violence. Second, emancipatory discourses affect the way intervention is practiced, institutionalized, and operationalized. Third, emancipatory liberalism has an impact on how the liberal democracies confront resistance. The book contributes to both a rethinking of liberal democracy and its relationship to world politics, as well as debates in international theory about the effects of liberal internationalism on global processes.
Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Liberalism and Violence in World Politics
2. Emancipatory Liberalism and the Transformative Power of Discourse
3. Transformation and Civilization: Liberalism, Empire, Intervention (1848-1900)
4. Transformation and Self-Determination: Internationalists at War (1900-1945)
5. Transformation and Totalitarianism: Confronting the Specter of Communism (1945-1989)
6. Transformation and Terror: State Failure and the Radicalization of Development (1989-Present)
7. Conclusion: Toward a Rethinking of International Liberalism?
If you are interested in learning more about this project, please contact me at: DTatum@fmarion.edu .
A Synopsis
My book project reconstructs a history of international liberalism, focusing on the ways that theorists, policymakers, and publics have negotiated the problem of violence and intervention. I argue that a strand of liberal ideology, what I have termed emancipatory liberalism, has a long, and complicated, historical connection with violence and intervention in word politics. Emancipatory liberalism is a paternalist liberalism with an understanding of the liberal project as a universal one: requiring the fortunate and enlightened to “save” those who are in trouble. This book draws out the effects of emancipatory liberalism, its interaction with institutions of force, and the interplay between practices of violence on the ground and the discourses of liberty that give rise to them. This book illustrates the intertwined history of violence and emancipatory liberalism to illustrate the connections between ideology, culture, discourse, and intervention in international society.
This book is also about discourses and their power in international history. Discourses influence the way that states act and create the space for actors to interpret their positions, practices, and beliefs about the world. Emancipatory liberalism does this in three ways. First, it structures justifications for violence. Second, emancipatory discourses affect the way intervention is practiced, institutionalized, and operationalized. Third, emancipatory liberalism has an impact on how the liberal democracies confront resistance. The book contributes to both a rethinking of liberal democracy and its relationship to world politics, as well as debates in international theory about the effects of liberal internationalism on global processes.
Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Liberalism and Violence in World Politics
2. Emancipatory Liberalism and the Transformative Power of Discourse
3. Transformation and Civilization: Liberalism, Empire, Intervention (1848-1900)
4. Transformation and Self-Determination: Internationalists at War (1900-1945)
5. Transformation and Totalitarianism: Confronting the Specter of Communism (1945-1989)
6. Transformation and Terror: State Failure and the Radicalization of Development (1989-Present)
7. Conclusion: Toward a Rethinking of International Liberalism?
If you are interested in learning more about this project, please contact me at: DTatum@fmarion.edu .