There have been significant political eras which have shaped not only the structure of world politics but the way in which it has been studied. The geopolitical and ideological contours of the Cold War period, for example, had an impact on almost every aspect of world politics and the study of international relations for around 45 years. This book argues that, just as the collapse of the Soviet Union in the period following the fall of the Berlin Wall signalled the end of strategic polarization, it also marked the apparent end of a particular form of polarized debate around political, social and economic ideas. The various new directions taken by scholars of international relations in the post–Cold War era constitute a large part of a ‘new agenda? for the discipline. This collection reflects the variety of issues and approaches that have become part and parcel of this agenda over the past ten years. Issues tackled in this volume include the power of culture and ideology,...
