Gotta Stop Living In a Man's World

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.