Eye on the World

Viewing International Relations through a gendered lens involves several challenges to the way that we as students are generally encouraged to study the field. First of all, we must identify and consider what is viewed as ‘normal’ within the spheres of politics and perception. Second of all, we must attempt to widen our viewpoints to encompass a broader scope of factors than traditional International Relations scholars would deem necessary.

In her article “Feminist International Relations: Making Sense…”, Maysia Zalewski discusses the need for feminist narratives and examination within the field of International Relations. Her emphasis on the fact that examining global politics through feminism “commences an unravelling of conventional boundaries and foundations” struck me as an especially powerful sentiment, especially considering how the author intersects the notions of gender and sexuality throughout her article. The strong connection between the unease of having women participate in front-line military combat and the need to affirm and emphasize traditional gender and sexuality roles is a very prominent mentality. The military itself in so many countries is built up as a pinnacle of heterosexuality and masculinity, and ‘diluting’ the warrior mentality image with the inclusion of women and LGBT men is still seen as threatening and uncomfortable in many circles.

Also of great interest to me was the way in which Zalewski drew images within popular culture into her analysis of gender and international relations. When it comes to television, I can’t think of another medium that reaches so many people and influences so many individual’s perspectives and conceptions of normality. The depictions that we see of masculinity and femininity within television truly do define what is ‘usual’ in a big way, and Zaleski’s example of Jack Bauer shows that there are some very traditional examples of masculinity and heroism being shown. However, I would have loved an examination of characters that defy traditional gender roles and norms that exist on television. Although sometimes it feels as though these exceptions are few and far between, there are an increasing number of women engaging with “masculine” actions and lines of work in fictional television programs.

To intersect with the idea of women in the military above, Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica provides a non-sexualized image of women within a military force.

The rareness of such women and their stories in popular media – and thus popular perception – is, to me, another facet of the question “where are the women?”.  Zalewski makes a very important point about being able to the inclusion of gender to lead us into examining other facets of ‘normalcy’ and what they mean.

Another…