Programme

The course introduces students to the main theories and debates in the field of international relations. It provides them with the theoretical tools to analyze both international politics and the foreign policies of individual states and supranational entities, including the European Union. In particular, it suggests innovative approaches for students to learn theory by applying it to key areas and issues in world politics: a global perspective to IR, contemporary wars in the international system, the rise of China, global governance, the crisis of the liberal order, international human rights policy, the politics of memory in IR, and Italian and European foreign policies in a changing world order. In addition, the course introduces basic methodological approaches to the study of IR.

Core Documentation

Textbook: Sørensen, Georg, and Jørgen Møller. Introduction to International Relations and Global Politics. OUP Oxford, 2025. (Chapter 1-8, 17, 18)
Smith, S.: “Introducing Feminism in International Relations Theory”, E-International Relations, 2018: https://www.e-ir.info/2018/01/04/feminism-in-international-relations-theory/.
For non-attending students: the same readings listed for attending students, plus one book of your choice selected at the beginning of the course from the following bibliography (please coordinate the selection of the book with me).

Reference Bibliography

Acharya, Amitav and Barry Buzan. 2019. The Making of Global International Relations: Origins and Evolution of IR at its Centenary. Cambridge University Press Allison, Graham. 2018. Destinati alla guerra. Possono l’America e la Cina sfuggire alla trappola di Tucidide? Fazi. Bentley, Tom. 2015. Empires of Remorse. Narrative, postcolonialism and apologies for colonial atrocity. Routledge. Chakrabarty, Dipesh. 2021. Clima, storia e capitale. Nottetempo. Diodato, Emidio e Raffaele Marchetti. 2023. Manuale di politica estera italiana. Il Mulino. Guttry, Andrea De, e Fabrizio Pagani. 2010. Le Nazioni Unite. Sviluppo e riforma del sistema di sicurezza collettiva. Il Mulino. Ikenberry, John. 2021. Un mondo sicuro per la democrazia. Internazionalismo liberale e crisi dell'ordine globale. Vita e Pensiero. Mabon, Simon. The Struggle for Supremacy in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Iran. Cambridge University Press, 2023. Sikkink, Kathryn. 2019. Evidence for Hope: Making Human Rights Work in the 21st Century. Princeton University Press. Strazzari, Francesco. 2022. Frontiera Ucraina. Guerra, geopolitiche e ordine internazionale. Il Mulino. Zarakol, Ayşe. 2022. Before the West: The Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders. Cambridge University Press.

Attendance

Attendance is optional. Students who attend at least 70% of the classes will be considered regular students and, as such, will give a group presentation on a current topic in international politics, which will account for 20% of the final grade. Non-regular students, in addition to the required textbook, will choose a second book from the recommended reading list of the course.

Type of evaluation

Course assessment will be based on a final written exam, divided into two main parts. The first part—consisting of multiple-choice and open-ended questions—aims to assess students’ knowledge of the main theoretical approaches to international relations that will be covered in the lectures on theory, as well as through the study of the required readings. The second part will consist of writing an essay on a topic related to world politics that: 1. will be studied in the in-depth lectures (an option reserved for attending students) 2. will be based on the study of the selected books assigned to non-attending students. After the written exam, once the grade has been communicated, students will have 7 days to accept or reject the grade.

Programme

The course introduces students to the main theories and debates in the field of international relations. It provides them with the theoretical tools to analyze both international politics and the foreign policies of individual states and supranational entities, including the European Union. In particular, it suggests innovative approaches for students to learn theory by applying it to key areas and issues in world politics: a global perspective to IR, contemporary wars in the international system, the rise of China, global governance, the crisis of the liberal order, international human rights policy, the politics of memory in IR, and Italian and European foreign policies in a changing world order. In addition, the course introduces basic methodological approaches to the study of IR.

Core Documentation

Textbook: Sørensen, Georg, and Jørgen Møller. Introduction to International Relations and Global Politics. OUP Oxford, 2025. (Chapter 1-8, 17, 18)
Smith, S.: “Introducing Feminism in International Relations Theory”, E-International Relations, 2018: https://www.e-ir.info/2018/01/04/feminism-in-international-relations-theory/.
For non-attending students: the same readings listed for attending students, plus one book of your choice selected at the beginning of the course from the following bibliography (please coordinate the selection of the book with me).

Reference Bibliography

Acharya, Amitav and Barry Buzan. 2019. The Making of Global International Relations: Origins and Evolution of IR at its Centenary. Cambridge University Press Allison, Graham. 2018. Destinati alla guerra. Possono l’America e la Cina sfuggire alla trappola di Tucidide? Fazi. Bentley, Tom. 2015. Empires of Remorse. Narrative, postcolonialism and apologies for colonial atrocity. Routledge. Chakrabarty, Dipesh. 2021. Clima, storia e capitale. Nottetempo. Diodato, Emidio e Raffaele Marchetti. 2023. Manuale di politica estera italiana. Il Mulino. Guttry, Andrea De, e Fabrizio Pagani. 2010. Le Nazioni Unite. Sviluppo e riforma del sistema di sicurezza collettiva. Il Mulino. Ikenberry, John. 2021. Un mondo sicuro per la democrazia. Internazionalismo liberale e crisi dell'ordine globale. Vita e Pensiero. Mabon, Simon. The Struggle for Supremacy in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Iran. Cambridge University Press, 2023. Sikkink, Kathryn. 2019. Evidence for Hope: Making Human Rights Work in the 21st Century. Princeton University Press. Strazzari, Francesco. 2022. Frontiera Ucraina. Guerra, geopolitiche e ordine internazionale. Il Mulino. Zarakol, Ayşe. 2022. Before the West: The Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders. Cambridge University Press.

Attendance

Attendance is optional. Students who attend at least 70% of the classes will be considered regular students and, as such, will give a group presentation on a current topic in international politics, which will account for 20% of the final grade. Non-regular students, in addition to the required textbook, will choose a second book from the recommended reading list of the course.

Type of evaluation

Course assessment will be based on a final written exam, divided into two main parts. The first part—consisting of multiple-choice and open-ended questions—aims to assess students’ knowledge of the main theoretical approaches to international relations that will be covered in the lectures on theory, as well as through the study of the required readings. The second part will consist of writing an essay on a topic related to world politics that: 1. will be studied in the in-depth lectures (an option reserved for attending students) 2. will be based on the study of the selected books assigned to non-attending students. After the written exam, once the grade has been communicated, students will have 7 days to accept or reject the grade.