Feminist Theory in International Relations

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering the waves of feminism, key theorists, conceptualizations of gender, and applications in security and political economy based on the lecture notes.

First wave feminism

The period of feminist development from the late 1700s to the early 1800s, focused on liberal feminism, suffrage, and seeking equal rights within existing political structures.

Mary Wollstonecraft

A key figure associated with the first wave of feminism.

Second wave feminism

Developing in the 1960s and 1970s, this wave emphasized material conditions of oppression, including economic inequality and property rights, influenced by civil rights and Marxist thought.

Third wave feminism

A 1990s reaction against the materialism of the second wave, acknowledging differences among women and focusing on concepts like intersectionality and performativity.

Kimberle Crenshaw

A scholar who popularized the concept of intersectionality, observing injustices towards black women to argue that social identities and power structures are interconnected.

Judith Butler

A post-structuralist scholar associated with the concept of performativity, arguing that gender is enacted through repeated social actions.

Fourth wave feminism

The era from the 2000s onwards, characterized by digital and social media influence, being queer and trans-inclusive, sex positive, and body positive.

Intersectionality

The concept that various social identities (race, gender, class, sexuality) are interconnected and mutually constitutive, shaping individual experiences of oppression and privilege.

Audre Lorde

A theorist who underscored that there is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because people do not lead single-issue lives; also known for viewed self-care as an act of political warfare.

Essentialism

A framework that sees gender rooted in biology, with inherent qualities linked to sex, where the body dictates behavior (e.g., male is strong, female is nurturing).

Constructivism

The argument that gender is a social and cultural construct distinct from biological sex, where societal norms and conditioning shape behavior and expectations.

Post-structuralism

An approach that takes the constructivist view further, arguing that the concepts used to understand bodies and gender are themselves social constructs and that ideas shape the body.

Cynthia Enloe

A feminist IR scholar who asks "Where are the women?" and "What work is gender doing?" to uncover invisible roles in statecraft and analyze how gendered assumptions shape global politics.

Descriptive representation

Refers to having individuals in political office who share demographic similarities with the population, such as being a woman.

Substantive representation

Refers to whether political representatives effectively advocate for the interests of the groups they represent.

Jean Bethke Elshtain

Author of "Just Warriors" and "Beautiful Souls" (1988), highlighting how males are historically seen as combatants and civilians are feminized as the protected.

Military masculinity

A term explored by Megan McKenzie (2015) referring to the performance of gender in military contexts, emphasizing aggression, toughness, and hierarchical structures.

Governance feminism

A concept used by Janet Halley to describe how certain forms of feminism are instrumentalized to justify military action or intervention to "save" women.

Reproductive Labour

Includes biological reproduction and the care work essential for maintaining a household; often unpaid and undervalued.

Depletion

A concept described by Shirin Rai (2024) regarding the human cost of unpaid care work that leads to the exhaustion of personal resources.

Global care chains

Migration patterns where women move from resource-poor countries to industrialized nations for domestic work, often leaving their own families behind.