Alice at the Mad Tea Party: How Feminism

Troubles International Relations

1he decade LhaL began wlLh Lhe SovleL lnLervenLlon ln AfghanlsLan ended wlLh
LhaL emplre chooslng Lo volunLarlly go ouL of buslness and dlsmanLle Lhelr LerrlLorlal
auLhorlLles" (SylvesLer, 2001: 7). 1hls was an occaslon LhaL Lhe purveyors of Lhe reallsL
paradlgm noL only falled Lo predlcL, buL would have argued was fundamenLally
lmposslble, emplres do noL volunLarlly rellnqulsh power, noL wlLhouL a flghL. 1he
elghLles conLalned oLher challenges Lo LradlLlonal lnLernaLlonal relaLlons and securlLy as
well, among Lhem 8lchard ullman's '8edeflnlng SecurlLy' ln 1981, whlch argued for
movlng away from Lhe sLaLe and mlllLary as Lhe sole referenLs ln l8 research and
LhoughL. 1haL Lhe world of l8 seemed ready Lo do so could be polnLed Lo by Lhe facL LhaL
ullman's arLlcle was publlshed ln a LradlLlonally reallsL [ournal, !"#$%"&#'("&) +$,-%'#.. Cf
all Lhe crlLlques of lnLernaLlonal relaLlons Lo appear ln Lhls decade and lnLo Lhe nexL, one
LhaL conLlnues Lo 'broaden and deepen' are femlnlsL and gender approaches Lo
lnLernaLlonal relaLlons. ln assesslng how femlnlsm 'Lroubles' lnLernaLlonal relaLlons,
glven LhaL femlnlsm ls a broad church, and noL consLlLuLlve of a slngle, monollLhlc
approach, lL ls useful Lo make use of several frameworks wlLh whlch Lo proceed.
lemlnlsL approaches Lo lnLernaLlonal relaLlons can flrsLly be Lhough of as asklng (l) whaL
are Lhe effecLs of mascullne blas?, (ll) where are Lhe women?, and (lll) how should l8
Lheory be deconsLrucLed and reconsLrucLed (eLerson, 2004: 37-38)? AnoLher
framework ls Lo look aL Lhe 'key poslLlons' of femlnlsLs, broken down lnLo (l) llberal, (ll)
sLandpolnL, and (lll) posLsLrucLural femlnlsms (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010: 36).
LasLly, lL ls useful and lnsLrucLlve Lo Lhlnk abouL femlnlsL approaches Lo lnLernaLlonal
relaLlons ln Lerms of (l) emplrlcal femlnlsm, (ll) analyLlcal femlnlsm, and (lll) normaLlve
femlnlsm (1rue, 2009). 8y examlnlng Lhese vlewpolnLs, sLandpolnLs, and approaches, we
can slghL, slghL and clLe women ln a fleld LradlLlonally domlnaLed by mascullne gender
and men, and reveal how femlnlsm Lroubles lnLernaLlonal relaLlons.




ln whaL femlnlsL l8 LheorlsL v. Splke eLerson calls Lhe lnlLlal femlnlsL pro[ecL",
work has been done Lo deLall Lhe exLenL Lo whlch women have been lefL ouL of pollLlcal
narraLlves, and also how 'woman' ls presenLed as belng 'less' or somehow devlanL from
a 'male' ldeal. As eLerson poslLs,

lrom wlLhln l8 for example, Lhe assumed model of 'human naLure' (as
aLomlsLlc, self-servlng, acqulslLlve, compeLlLlve) ls ln facL based upon a
parLlcular subseL of humans (ellLe males) ln a parLlcular hlsLorlcal conLexL
(modern Lurope). 1hese are noL unlversal caLegorles or condlLlons and
are Lherefore susplclous as unlversallzlng clalms abouL all humans - or
even all males - aL all Llmes (eLerson, 2004: 37)

1hls 'lnlLlal pro[ecL', followlng on Lhls loglc, also assalls Lhe 'mascullnlsL consLrucLs' wlLh
whlch Lhese predomlnanLly whlLe, Luropean (even ellLe Amerlcan men are of Luropean
herlLage) l8 LheorlsLs are engaged: lL ls a dlsclpllne focused on publlc sphere acLlvlLles
(power pollLlcs, forelgn pollcy, war) LhaL are deflned as mascullne and domlnaLed by
men" (eLerson, 2004: 37). Carol Cohn's 'Sex and ueaLh ln Lhe 8aLlonal World of
uefense lnLellecLuals' deLalls her lnLernshlp ln Lhe world of SLraLeglc Alr Command
sLraLeglsLs, whlch she characLerlzes as whlLe men ln Lles dlscusslng mlsslle slze, a world
LhaL ls nearly enLlrely male excepL for secreLarles. Cohn exposes Lhe elaboraLe use of
absLracLlon and euphemlsm" ln whlch Lhese men use sanlLlzed language Lo dlscuss
nuclear war, Lerms llke 'clean bombs', 'collaLeral damage', and 'counLervalue aLLacks',
whlch lmply clvlllan casualLles ln Lhe Lens of mllllons, buL never sLaLe such wlLh expllclLy
(Cohn, 1987: 691-692). Cohn goes on Lo deLall Lhe 'sexual subLexL' of Lhe work of
nuclear sLraLeglsLs, wlLh Lhelr 'peneLraLlon alds', Lhe exLenL Lo whlch Lhese sLraLeglsLs
llnk dlsarmamenL wlLh emasculaLlon, and proposals for releaslng 70 Lo 80 percenL of
our megaLonnage ln one orgasmlc whump", because Lhe 8usslans are a llLLle harder
Lhan we are" (Cohn, 1987: 693). She goes on Lo demonsLraLe how [olnlng Lhe world's
nuclear club ls referred Lo as loslng one's vlrglnlLy, how 'domesLlc' language ('sllos',
'ChrlsLmas Lree farms', 'Lake ouL', 'marry up') ls employed, how Cppenhelmer's deadly
baby ls consldered Lhe producL of a male havlng glven blrLh, and how Lhe excluslvely
male lmage of Lhe blbllcal '1rlnlLy' are used Lo gender Lhe world of nuclear weapons
(Cohn, 1987: 696-702). As a resulL of Lhe Llme she spenL ln Lhls world, Cohn asserLs she
began Lo feel LhaL l had fallen down Lhe rabblL hole - and lL was a sLruggle Lo cllmb
back ouL", noL Lhe leasL of whlch because, as a resulL of havlng been lmmersed ln Lhe
mad Lea parLy of 'raLlonal' whlLe men ln Lles calmly and cllnlcally dlscusslng Lhe
desLrucLlon of llfe on earLh, LhaL she, Loo, began Lo belleve slx lmposslble Lhlngs before
breakfasL" (Cohn, 1987: 713). Cohn concludes LhaL deconsLrucLlng sLraLeglc dlscourse's
clalms Lo raLlonallLy ls, Lhen, ln and of lLself, an lmporLanL way Lo challenge lLs
hegemony as Lhe sole leglLlmaLe language for publlc debaLe abouL nuclear pollcy"
(Cohn, 1987: 717). Cohn's savvy and success ln dlssecLlng mascullnlsL blas ln Lhe world of
nuclear sLraLeglsLs runs counLer Lo some of Lhe clalms made by whlLe men ln Lles wlLh
mlsslle envy. uonald 8egan, resldenL 8eagan's WhlLe Pouse Chlef of SLaff, for example,
clalmed LhaL women are noL golng Lo undersLand [mlsslle] Lhrow welghLs or whaL ls
happenlng ln human rlghLs. some women wlll, buL mosL women would raLher read Lhe
human lnLeresL sLuff" (1lckner, 1992: 2). 1hus, femlnlsL l8 LheorlsLs reveal how women
and anyLhlng havlng a consLrucL of 'femlnlnlLy' (whlch lncludes non-ellLe men and
culLures) have been occulLed and occluded due Lo belng porLrayed as Lhe 'CLher' and
noL worLhy of Lhe sLudy LhaL men and mascullnlzed acLlvlLles should be.

1he nexL femlnlsL pro[ecL asks Where are Lhe women?", and seeks Lo remedy
androcenLrlc formulaLlons by addlng women and Lhelr experlences Lo exlsLlng
frameworks" (eLerson, 2004:37). locuslng on women's experlences ln boLh prlvaLe and
publlc spheres, noL only ls more learned abouL women and Lhe fundamenLally dlfferenL
ways ln whlch Lhey experlence llfe, buL more ls learned abouL men, as well. eLerson
asserLs LhaL Lhls lnLegraLlon of Lhe 'maln' sLory wlLh Lhe 'background' sLory ls essenLlal ln
galnlng a rlcher undersLandlng of Lhe forces and processes aL work ln lnLernaLlonal
relaLlons (eLerson, 2004: 37). Pere eLerson asserLs

Maklng women emplrlcally vlslble ls lndlspensable, and ls Lhe mosL famlllar
and mosL wldely accepLed femlnlsL lnLervenLlon ln l8. lL exposes Lhe
androcenLrlc assumpLlons of convenLlonal accounLs, lnserLs acLual
(embodled) women ln our plcLure of 'reallLy', and reveals women as agenLs
and acLlvlsLs, as well as vlcLlms of vlolence and Lhe pooresL of Lhe poor.
1hese are lmporLanL and lnnovaLlve lnslghLs and Lo Lhe exLenL LhaL Lhey are
noLlced aL all by Lhe malnsLream, Lhey LenL Lo be 'accepLed' as emplrlcally
sound observaLlons and hence have 'leglLlmacy' wlLhln l8 (eLerson, 2004:
38)

1he lasL of femlnlsm's Lhree generallzed 'pro[ecLs' asserLed by eLerson ls LhaL of
'reconsLrucLlng Lheory'. Cne sLrand of femlnlsL l8 Lheory asserLs LhaL, whlle sex ls
blologlcally bl-polar, LhaL gender ls a soclal consLrucLlon LhaL spllLs acLs, appearances
and behavlors lnLo mascullne-femlnlne. 1hus, gender ls noL slmply a LralL of lndlvlduals
buL an lnsLlLuLlonallzed, sLrucLural feaLure of soclal llfe" (eLerson, 2004: 39). lL regards
gender as boLh an emplrlcal caLegory, and an analyLlcal caLegory, wlLh v. Splke eLerson
asserLlng Lhe need for Lhe fleld Lo progresslvely move from Lhe former Lo laLLer
caLegorles. ln Lhe conLexL of securlLy sLudles, lL means asklng whaL securlLy can mean ln
Lhe conLexL of lnLerlocklng sysLems of hlerarchy and domlnaLlon ands how gendered
ldenLlLles and ldeologles (re)produce Lhese sLrucLural lnsecurlLlLes"(eLerson, 1992: 32),
as Sheehan suggesLs, ConsLlLuLlng new vlslons of securlLy ls Lherefore seen as requlrlng
Lhe pollLlclzaLlon of sLrucLural vlolence as conLlngenL and noL naLural, and accepLlng LhaL
lL can be changed" (Sheehan, 2003: 126). SLressed also ls Lhe ldea LhaL Lhe sLaLe ls a
'proLecLlon rackeL', LhaL offers securlLy from lnLernal and exLernal LhreaLs LhaL are of lLs
own creaLlon (Sheehan, 2003: 126).

lL ls Lhls lasL 'pro[ecL', LhaL of creaLlng lLs own LheoreLlcal conLrlbuLlon, LhaL has
Lhus far been mosL dlfflculL, and encounLered mosL reslsLance. Andrew !ones offers Lhe
crlLlque LhaL

lemlnlsL aLLempLs Lo lncorporaLe a gender varlable lnLo l8 analysls are
consLralned by Lhe baslc femlnlsL meLhodology and all femlnlsLs' normaLlve
commlLmenLs. A genulnely 'femlnlsL approach' by deflnlLlon musL Lake
/(0$"'s llves as Lhe eplsLemologlcal sLarLlng polnL. And a deflnlng elemenL
of femlnlsL approaches. ls a soclal pro[ecL almed aL amelloraLlng women's
sLrucLured lack of prlvllege and emanclpaLlng Lhem as a gender-class
(!ones, 1996: 420)

ln defense, eLerson polnLs ouL LhaL all Lheory crlLlcal of Lhe domlnanL l8 Lheorles ls
sub[ecL Lo marglnallzaLlon or dlsmlssal", and adds LhaL lnsofar as femlnlsL Lheorles are
Lhe leasL famlllar and ralse Lhe mosL unorLhodox quesLlons, Lhey are especlally sub[ecL
Lo Lhls faLe" (eLerson, 2004: 43).


A second framework for assesslng how femlnlsm Lroubles LradlLlonal l8 ls Lo
apply eoples and vaughan-Wllllams' 'key poslLlons' approach, spllLLlng Lhe fleld of
femlnlsL l8 lnLo llberal, sLandpolnL, and posLsLrucLural camps. 1he flrsL, LhaL of femlnlsL
llberals, can be Lyplfled by CynLhla Lnloe and her lconlc 1&"&"&23 1$&,4$2 &"5 1&2$26
7&8'"9 :$0'"'2# +$"2$ (; !"#$%"&#'("&) <()'#',2, ln whlch she polnLs ouL LhaL lf we
employ only Lhe convenLlonal, ungendered compass Lo charL lnLernaLlonal pollLlcs, we
are llkely Lo end up mapplng a landscape peopled only by men, mosLly ellLe men. 1he
real landscape of lnLernaLlonal pollLlcs ls less excluslvely male" (Lnloe, 1989: 1). 1hus,
Lnloe dlssecLs Lourlsm, naLlonallsm, mlllLary bases, Lhe world of dlplomacy, banana
planLaLlons, Lhe fashlon world, and Lhe world of domesLlc servanLs, looklng for Lhe
unLold sLorles, and Lhus unheralded conLrlbuLlons, of women. ln keeplng wlLh Lhe sLrand
of femlnlsL l8 Lheory, she asserLs LhaL, far from belng 'naLural', LhaL femlnlnlLy and
mascullnlLy are packages of expecLaLlons LhaL have been creaLed Lhrough speclflc
declslons by speclflc people" (Lnloe, 1989: 3). As lllusLraLlve of Lhe dlfference beLween
sex and gender, she answers Lhe common Well, whaL abouL ______________?"
quesLlon, ln whlch men Lrylng Lo lnvalldaLe any dlscusslon of gender ln lnLernaLlonal
pollLlcs" lnserL lnLo Lhe blank space a female pollLlcal flgure who has been known Lo use
force, 1haLcher, Condoleeza 8lce, CaLherlne 1he CreaL would all be candldaLes. Lnloe
en[olns, lL's qulLe clear. LhaL a woman lsn'L lnherenLly or lrreverslbly anLl-mlllLarlsLlc or
anLl-auLhorlLarlan. lL's a maLLer of soclal processes and sLrucLures LhaL have been
creaLed and susLalned over Lhe generaLlons. (Lnloe, 1989: 6). Cne of Lnloe's key
conLrlbuLlons Lo Lroubllng l8 ls her suggesLlon LhaL Lhe 'personal ls Lhe pollLlcal', whlch
undermlned Lhe prevalenL noLlon LhaL Lhe prlvaLe sphere was somehow 'ouL of
bounds' ln Lhe sLudy of securlLy" (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010: 38). Lnloe explalns
furLher, LhaL relaLlonshlps we once lmaglned were prlvaLe or merely soclal are ln facL
lnfused wlLh power, usually unequal power backed up by publlc auLhorlLy", and
concludes LhaL lL has Laken power Lo deprlve women of land LlLles and leave Lhem llLLle
cholce buL Lo sexually servlce soldlers and banana workers" (Lnloe, 1989: 193, 197-198).
CrlLlque of Lhe femlnlsL llberal perspecLlve hlnges around Lhe ldea LhaL lL ls essenLlally
poslLlvlsL, wlLh posL-poslLlvlsLs argulng LhaL Lnloe and oLher llberals slmply 'add women
and sLlr', and LhaL Lhe poslLlon ls vulnerable Lo Lhe charge of essenLlallzlng women's
ldenLlLles raLher Lhan appreclaLlng dlfference accordlng Lo race, class, eLhnlclLy, and
oLher forms of soclal and geopollLlcal sLraLlflcaLlon" (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010:
38).


1he 'key poslLlon' of sLandpolnL femlnlsm ls ln conLrasL Lo Lhe llberal approach,
whlch sLandpolnL and oLher femlnlsLs accuse of slmply addlng women lnLo a reallsL
framework LhaL was consLrucLed for and by men, as LlshLaln suggesLs, no chlldren are
ever born, and nobody ever dles, ln Lhls consLrucLed world. 1here are sLaLes, and Lhey
are whaL ls" (LlshLaln, 1987: 91). lemlnlsL l8 LheorlsL !. Ann 1lckner asks us Lo Lhlnk
abouL how Lhe dlsclpllne of lnLernaLlonal relaLlons mlghL look lf gender were lncluded as
a caLegory of analysls and lf women's experlences were parL of Lhe sub[ecL maLLer ouL of
whlch lLs Lheorles were consLrucLed" (1lckner: 1992: 3). 1lckner Lroubles Lhe 'men =
lnLernaLlonal, women = domesLlc' dlchoLomles, demonsLraLlng LhaL Lhe ldeallzed
noLlon of Lhe brave clLlzen-soldler abroad ls shown Lo 5$=$"5 -=(" Lhe devaluaLlon of
Lhe female sub[ecL and myLhs abouL Lhe need for her proLecLlon aL home" (eoples &
vaughan-Wllllams, 2010: 40). 1lckner, echolng Slmone ue 8eauvolr, also argues LhaL Lhe
game ls rlgged, lf glvlng one's llfe for one's counLry has been consldered Lhe hlghesL
form of paLrloLlsm, buL lL ls an acL from whlch women have been vlrLually excluded "
(1lckner, 1992: 28). She also lamenLs Lhe exLenL Lo whlch, when women have Lrled Lo
become more lnvolved ln naLlonal securlLy, Lhelr asplraLlons are denled by male power.
lor example, when 8ella Abzug requesLed a seaL on Lhe Pouse Armed Servlces
CommlLLee, seeklng Lo brlng an end Lo Lhe vleLnam confllcL, she was denled, wlLh one
slLLlng member remarklng LhaL Lhe AgrlculLure CommlLLee would be more approprlaLe
(1lckner, 1992: 2). lf boLh Lhe domesLlc and lnLernaLlonal were Laken lnLo conslderaLlon
ln formulaLlng and creaLlng securlLy, 1lckner suggesLs Lhe end resulL would be a
deflnlLlon of securlLy LhaL ls people-cenLered and Lranscends sLaLe and reglonal
boundarles" (1lckner, 1993: 192).


As noLed earller, femlnlsL l8 ls noL a slngle monollLh, and, Lo wlL, posLsLrucLural
femlnlsLs sLand ln counLerpolnL Lo Lhe llberal femlnlsLs llke CynLhla Lnloe, and Lhe
sLandpolnL femlnlsLs llke !. Ann 1lckner. Whereas Lnloe and 1lckner seek Lo develop a
programme ouL of a crlLlque of paLrlarchy, posLsLrucLurallsLs are heslLanL Lo deLermlne
whaL should be done ln such an absLracL, essenLlallsL and unlversallzlng way", and
commlL Lo a broader commlLmenL Lo quesLlonlng whaL lL means Lo make clalms abouL
and ln Lhe name of 'men' and 'women'" (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010: 41).
osLsLrucLural femlnlsLs do noL regard only gender as a soclal consLrucL, Lhey belleve sex
Lo be soclally consLlLuLed as well. 1hus, posLsLrucLurallsLs argue LhaL we should noL
confer any speclal onLologlcal sLaLus Lo 'manhood' or 'womanhood': Lhere ls no unlquely
male or female vlew or experlence." (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010: 41). Pence, v.
Splke eLerson argues LhaL femlnlsL l8 ls abouL Lransformlng ways of belng and
knowlng ln Lhe sLudy of securlLy" (eLerson, 1992: 20). Some crlLlclsm of femlnlsL
posLsLrucLurallsm comes from Lhe femlnlsL quarLer lLself, whlch argues LhaL ellmlnaLlng
womanhood as an analyLlcal caLegory robs Lhe fleld of Lhe very node along whlch Lhe
assaulL on paLrlarchy was Lo be mounLed. 1lckner argues, Lo be unable Lo speak for
women only furLher relnforces Lhe volces of Lhose who have consLrucLed approaches Lo
lnLernaLlonal relaLlons ouL of Lhe experlences of men" (1lckner, 1992:17).




LasLly, femlnlsL's Lroubllng of lnLernaLlonal relaLlons can be assessed uslng !acqul
1rue's framework of $0='%',&), &"&).#',&), and "(%0&#'>$ femlnlsms. Lmplrlcal femlnlsm
correcLs Lhe denlal or mlsrepresenLaLlon of women ln world pollLlcs due Lo false
assumpLlons LhaL male experlences can counL for boLh men and women, and LhaL
women are elLher absenL from lnLernaLlonal pollLlcal acLlvlLles or noL relevanL Lo global
processes" (1rue: 2009: 240). 1rue conLlnues

lnLernaLlonal relaLlons has been excesslvely focused on confllcL and anarchy
and a way of pracLlclng sLaLecrafL and formulaLlng sLraLegy LhaL ls excesslvely
focused on compeLlLlon and fear. As a resulL, neo-reallsL and neo-llberal
lnLernaLlonal 8elaLlons scholars Lheorlze pollLlcs and Lhe lnLernaLlonal realm
ln a way LhaL guaranLees LhaL women wlll be absenL from Lhelr lnqulry, and
LhaL Lhelr research agendas remaln unalLered (1rue, 2009: 241)

Powever, lL ls noL only Lhe hallowed halls of reallsm and llberallsm LhaL femlnlsLs
Lrouble. Lena Pansen, who has wrlLLen wlLh Copenhagen School Lhlnkers 8uzan and
Waever, ls also one of Lhelr greaLesL crlLlcs. ln '1he LlLLle Mermald's SllenL SecurlLy
ullemma and Lhe Absence of Cender ln Lhe Copenhagen School', Pansen clLes several
crlLlclsms, lncludlng how Lhe school vlews socleLy and ldenLlLy, whaL role Lhe analysL
plays, and Lhe exLenL Lo whlch Lhe securlLlzaLlon Lheory ls sLlll essenLlally conservaLlve.
?eL", she conLlnues, Lhe sLrlklng absence of gender has noL been a sub[ecL of
dlscusslon" (Pansen, 2004: 286). Per crlLlque revolves around Lwo concepLs, whlch she
calls 'securlLy as sllence', and 'subsumlng securlLy'. 'SecurlLy as sllence', Pansen
proclalms, occurs when acLors cannoL 'speak securlLy' for Lhemselves, lndeed, ln some
cases, as ln Lhe case of honour kllllngs ln aklsLan, Lhey cannoL even have female ellLes
speak securlLy ln Lhelr sLead. Pansen's second crlLlque ls LhaL securlLy ldenLlLles are
subsumed ln some cases. Looklng aL Lhe mass rapes ln 8osnla, Pansen asserLs LhaL Lhe
rapes were subsumed by Lhe 8osnlan and Serblan governmenLs ln a securlLy debaLe
cenLered on Lhe naLlon", whlch sllenced LhreaLs Lo raped Musllm women comlng from
Lhelr own socleLy" (Pansen, 2004: 299).


ConLrasLed wlLh emplrlcal femlnlsm, analyLlcal femlnlsm asserLs Lhe hegemonlc
WesLern brand of mascullnlLy ls assoclaLed wlLh auLonomy, soverelgnLy, Lhe capaclLy for
reason and ob[ecLlvlLy and unlversallsm, whereas Lhe domlnanL noLlon of femlnlnlLy ls
assoclaLed wlLh Lhe absence or lack of Lhese characLerlsLlcs" (1rue, 2009: 246). 1rue
argues LhaL Lhe femlnlne-mascullne 'blnary opposlLlon' ls reproduced ln Lhe
publlc/prlvaLe and lnLernaLlonal/domesLlc dlchoLomles so beloved of lnLernaLlonal
relaLlons, relnforclng lLs lnslsLence LhaL Lhe domesLlc, prlvaLe sphere ls one of
lrraLlonallLy, dlsorder, and anarchy (1rue, 2009: 247). AL Lhe core of Lhe argumenL ls an
asserLlon LhaL

Lhe lndependence of domesLlc pollLlcs from lnLernaLlonal pollLlcs and Lhe
separaLlon of publlc from prlvaLe spheres cannoL be Lhe basls for a
dlsclpllnary boundary, slnce anarchy ouLslde and gender hlerarchy aL home
may be muLually relnforclng. 1hroughouL modern hlsLory, for example,
women have been Lold LhaL Lhey wlll recelve equallLy wlLh men, afLer Lhe
war, afLer llberaLlon, afLer Lhe naLlonal economy has been rebullL and so on:
buL afLer all Lhese 'ouLslde' forces have been conquered, Lhe commonplace
demand ls for Lhlngs Lo go back Lo normal, and women Lo a subordlnaLe
place (1rue, 2009: 248).

LasLly, normaLlve femlnlsm makes Lhe clalm LhaL gender ls a #%&"2;(%0&#'>$
caLegory from a normaLlve perspecLlve noL because we can deconsLrucL lL or do away
wlLh lL, buL because once we undersLand lL as a soclal consLrucLlon we can Lransform
how lL works aL all levels of soclal and pollLlcal llfe" (1rue, 2009: 233). 1rue explalns,
from a normaLlve femlnlsL perspecLlve aLLenLlve Lo Lhe pollLlcs of knowledge, gender
dlfference ls noL merely abouL Lhe relaLlons beLween mascullne and femlnlne ldenLlLles,
lL ls abouL how and from whaL poslLlon ln Lhe hlerarchy we can know" (1rue, 2009: 234).
1hls becomes parLlcularly sallenL when looklng aL crlLlclsm of gender as a concepL arlses,
ln parLlcular Lhe crlLlque from subalLern quarLers. Chandra MohanLy (llke Pansen) poslLs
LhaL Lhe use of gender subsumes oLher manners ln whlch Lhe norLh oppresses Lhe
SouLh, and crlLlclzes WesLern femlnlsLs' consLrucL of a '1hlrd World Woman' whlch ls
based on an 'orlenLallzed' vlew of Lhe SouLh (1rue, 2009: 233).






1hus does femlnlsm 'Lrouble' Lhe fleld of lnLernaLlonal relaLlons. lemlnlsm
conLlnues Lo look aL Lhe effecLs of mascullne blas on lnLernaLlonal relaLlons, whlch
1lckner asserLs prlvlleges lssue LhaL grow ouL of men's experlences, we are soclallzed
lnLo bellevlng LhaL war and power pollLlcs are spheres of acLlvlLy wlLh whlch men have a
speclal afflnlLy and LhaL Lhelr volces ln descrlblng and prescrlblng for Lhls world are
Lherefore llkely Lo be more auLhenLlc" (1lckner, 1992: 2). lemlnlsm asks 'Where are Lhe
women?', and seeks Lo slghL, slLe and clLe women ln lnLernaLlonal relaLlons, ln narraLlves
where Lhey have been convenlenLly lefL ouL, wheLher mlllLary base sex workers,
dlplomaLlc wlves, mulLl-naLlonal frulL company spokesmodels, or sweaLshop
seamsLresses (Lnloe, 1989). lemlnlsm also asks how lnLernaLlonal relaLlons Lheory
should be relmaglned and reworked ln llghL of gender, ln whlch Marya Zalewskl suggesLs
a dual beneflL: lL would confronL Lhe clrcular reasonlng LhaL keeps Lhe world golng ln
ways we perhaps don'L wanL", and, faclllLaLes Lhe consLrucLlon of a very dlfferenL sLory
LhaL whaL a 'kenneLh WalLz' or 'Alexander WendL' mlghL glve you' (SchouLen, 2009: 3).
lemlnlsLs use llberal, sLandpolnL, and posLsLrucLural approaches ln Lhelr research, as
well as emplrlcal, analyLlcal, and normaLlve research Lo creaLe Lhe broadenlng and
deepenlng of l8 LhaL femlnlsL approaches provlde. Cne way of gauglng Lhe exLenL Lo
whlch Lhe femlnlsL crlLlque, ln all lLs shapes and colours, has begun Lo be Laken serlously
ls by Lhe number of academlc LexLs whlch feaLure chapLers on femlnlsm (8urchlll, eL all,
2009) (Pughes & Meng: 2011) (eoples & vaughan-Wllllams, 2010) (Sheehan, 2003).
erhaps uavld 8oberLs sums Lhe poLenLlal beneflL Lo lnLernaLlonal relaLlons from
femlnlsL approaches, and Lherefore Lhe world aL large, when he declares Andrarchy
robs men of Lhe poLenLlal for a very dlfferenL, and beLLer, llves wlLh women, and lL robs
women of equallLy and opporLunlLles Lo en[oy peaceful and enrlchlng llves wlLh men"
(8oberLs, 2008: 134). lf Lhls lndeed be Lhe beneflL, lL wlll remaln well worLh belng
'Lroubled'.









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