I agree with Tickner that
Morgenthau’s prescriptions to the political world is becoming more and more
irrelevant. Therefore I also agree that incorporating feminist theory into
international relations will offer new solutions to our ever-changing world.
International relations theories have been predominantly written and analyzed
by men creating this masculine portrayal of world politics. It is the feminist
theories that are left out that must be considered. I do not consider myself a
feminist by any means. I feel like the word gets thrown around so much with a
negative connotation because at the root of it all, society continues to view
women with inferiority. Still, after all the gains women have made in both the
public and private spheres, nothing seems to shake our feeling that women are
unable to compete at the same level as men. It’s not because women don’t
possess the capabilities to compete, it’s just how it’s been reinforced for so
long. More specifically, men have dominated the political world. That’s just
how it was so that just how it is. But because women have this innateness to
contextualize and relate, they offer a perspective that must be considered in
the world we now live in. We may still be living in a man’s world, but given
the gains women have made, they are becoming equal contenders in this masculine
world.
Men possess the traits that are
necessary to succeed. This is natural and inherent and unavoidable. Because
women do not possess these traits, they are put at a disadvantage among their
male counterparts. Thus, their perspectives are not voiced as frequently or as
easily as they should. Their perspective and values are often minimized but it
is these perspectives and values that could actually benefit us all. Women do not see value in power by domination.
They see power as a mutual enablement to pursue profitable goals for all states
involved. This idea of maternal thinking is “focused on the preservation of
life…avoiding conflict when possible…and restoring community” (Tickner). In
this instance, women are the ones with the natural and inherent and unavoidable
traits to succeed in this frame of thought and men are the ones at the
disadvantage.
We should no longer think in terms
of ultimate domination, power over man, and security via military force. That
is no way to live. I can see that I’m projecting a rather excessively optimistic
or even idealist view point. But to continue living in a world where the only
way to feel safe is to be bigger and “badder” than other states is a dangerous
way to live. And it also makes us less concerned to other conflicts that need
our attention more. People aren’t beasts and we need to stop thinking in this
perspective. International relations theories that were applicable in previous
world wars are no longer useful in the world we live in. As the world has
adjusted since then it is time to adjust the way states construct their foreign
policies.
