English School – 'Chinese IR' engagements : order, harmony and the limits of elitism in Global IR

Williams, John

Abstract

This article addresses ongoing discussions across the English School (ES) of International Relations (IR) theory and IR theory drawing on Chinese philosophical traditions and Chinese history as exemplifying a “Global IR” approach. However, common interests in long-run history, non-material forms of power, and an international social structure have not yet led to sustained discussion of normative issues important to both approaches. Showing how analytical commonalities between ES and “Chinese” IR accounts of international societies and concepts of order and harmony focus on elite-level perspectives and priorities, I draw on critical and decolonial aspects of Global IR to argue for alternative accounts. Unexplored potential for this exists within the distinct methodological bases of ES and “Chinese IR,” opening space for normative engagement that can provide a model for other inter-tradition encounters in Global IR.

Citation

Williams, J. (2021). English School – 'Chinese IR' engagements : order, harmony and the limits of elitism in Global IR. The Chinese Journal Of International Politics, 14(1), 127-157. https://doi.org/10.1093/cjip/poaa022

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 9, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Mar 16, 2021
• Publication Date: 2021
• Deposit Date: Nov 10, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 16, 2023
• Journal: Chinese Journal Of International Politics
• Print ISSN: 1750-8916
• Electronic ISSN: 1750-8924
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 14
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 127-157
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/cjip/poaa022
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1287039