The Oxford Handbook of International Political Theory

International Political Theory (IPT) focuses on the point where two fields of study meet - International Relations and Political Theory. It takes from the former a central concern with the 'international' broadly defined; from the latter it takes a broadly normative identity. IPT studies the 'ought' questions that have been ignored or side-lined by the modern study of International Relations and the 'international' dimension that Political Theory has in the past neglected. A central proposition of IPT is that the 'domestic' and the 'international' cannot be treated as self-contained spheres, although this does not preclude states and the states-system from being regarded by some practitioners of IPT as central points of reference.

This Handbook provides an authoritative account of the issues, debates, and perspectives in the field, guided by two basic questions concerning its purposes and methods of inquiry. First, how does IPT connect with real world politics? In particular, how does it engage with real world problems, and position itself in relation to the practices of real world politics? And second, following on from this, what is the relationship between IPT and empirical research in international relations? This Handbook showcases the distinctive and valuable contribution of normative inquiry not just for its own sake but also in addressing real world problems.

The Oxford Handbooks of International Relations is a twelve-volume set of reference books offering authoritative and innovative engagements with the principal sub-fields of International Relations.

The series as a whole is under the General Editorship of Christian Reus-Smit of the University of Queensland and Duncan Snidal of the University of Oxford, with each volume edited by specialists in the field. The series both surveys the broad terrain of International Relations scholarship and reshapes it, pushing each sub-field in challenging new directions. Following the example of Reus-Smit and Snidal's original Oxford Handbook of International Relations, each volume is organized around a strong central thematic by scholars drawn from different perspectives, reading its sub-field in an entirely new way, and pushing scholarship in challenging new directions.

Chris Brown, Emeritus Professor of International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science,Robyn Eckersley, Professor of Political Science, University of Melbourne

Chris Brown is Emeritus Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is the author of numerous articles on international political theory and of International Society, Global Politics (2015), Practical Judgement in International Political Theory (2010), Sovereignty, Rights, and Justice (2002), International Relations Theory: New Normative Approaches (1992), editor of Political Restructuring in Europe: Ethical Perspectives (1994) and co-editor (with Terry Nardin and N.J. Rengger) of International Relations in Political Thought (2002). His textbook Understanding International Relations (2009) is now in its 4th edition and has been translated into Arabic, Chinese, Portuguese, and Turkish. He was Chair of the British International Studies Association from 1998 - 2000.


Robyn Eckersley is Professor of Political Science in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Melbourne and a member of the Academy of the Social Sciences of Australia. She has published widely in the fields of environmental politics, democratic theory, and International Relations, with a special focus on the politics and governance of climate change. Her books include Globalization and the Environment (with Peter Christoff, 2013), Why Human Security Matters (co-editor with D. Altman, J. Camilleri and G. Hoffstaedter, 2012), Special Responsibilities: Global Problems and American Power (co-author with M. Bukovansky, I. Clark, R. Price, C. Reus-Smit & N.J. Wheeler, 2012), The State and the Global Ecological Crisis (co-editor with J. Barry, 2005), Political Theory and the Ecological Challenge (co-editor with A. Dobson ,2006), and The Green State: Rethinking Democracy and Sovereignty (2004).

Part 1: Introduction
1. International Political Theory and the Real World, Chris Brown and Robyn Eckersley
Part 2: History, Traditions, and Perspectives
2. History of International Thought: Text and Context, David Boucher
3. The Slow Normalisation of Normative Political Theory: Cosmopolitanism and Communitarianism Then and Now, Peter Sutch
4. International Relations and International Political Theory, Chris Brown
5. International Law and International Political Theory, Gerry Simpson
6. Critical International Political Theory, Anna Jurkevics and Seyla Benhabib
7. Feminist International Political Theory, Laura Sjoberg
Part 3: International Justice
8. Global Distributive Justice: Seven Theses About Facts and Empirical Research, Simon Caney
9. Real World Global Egalitarianism, Darrel Moellendorf
10. Moral Responsibility - and Luck? - in International Politics, Toni Erskine
11. International Law and International Justice, Hilary Charlesworth
12. Transitional Justice, Susanne Buckley-Zistel
13. Minority Rights, Will Kymlicka
14. Environmental Justice and Sustainability, Edward Page
Part 4: IPT of Violence and Conflict
15. Violence and International Political Theory, Anthony F. Lang Jr
16. The Historical Just War Tradition, Cian O'Driscoll
17. Just War Theory Times of Individual Rights, Janina Dill
18. Moral Dilemmas of Asymmetric Conflict, Michael L. Gross
19. Ethics, Drones, and Killer Robots, Christopher Coker
20. International Relations Theory and Cybersecurity: Threats, Conflicts, and Ethics in an Emergent Domain, Brandon Valeriano and Ryan C. Maness
21. The Ethics and 'Realism' of Nonviolent Action, Mary Elizabeth King
Part 5: Humanitarianism and Human Rights
22. Human Rights and Humanitarianism, Michael N. Barnett
23. Human Rights in the Real World, Steve Hopgood
24. Humanitarian Actors and International Political Theory, Jennifer M. Welsh
25. The 'Responsibility to Protect' and International Political Theory, James Pattison
26. Multiculturalism and Women's Rights, Denise Walsh
27. The Human Right to Health and the Challenge of Poverty, Patrick Hayden
28. International Political Theory of LGBTQ Rights, Anthony J. Langlois
Part 6: Democracy, Accountability, and Global Governance
29. Democracy and Global Governance, Carol C. Gould
30. Sovereignty, Democracy, and Global Political Legitimacy, Terry Macdonald
31. The Ethical Limits of Global Democracy, Eva Erman
32. The Contested Ethics of Democracy Promotion, Milja Kurki
33. Deliberation and Global Governance, Jens Steffek
34. Accountability in Global Economic Governance, Kate MacDonald
35. Global Governance in the 'Anthropocene', Frank Biermann
Part 7 Ethics and International Public Policy
36. IPT meets International Public Policy, Christian Barry
37. Ethical Foreign Policy in a Multipolar World, Tim Dunne
38. Fair Trade Under Fire: How to Think about Fair Trade in Theory and Practice, Nicole Hassoun
39. International Migration and Human Rights, Luara Ferracioli
40. Climate Equity in the Real-World, Steve Vanderheiden
41. The Ethical Foundations of Aid: Two Duties of Rescue, Paul Collier
42. A Feminist Practical Ethics of Care, Fiona Robinson
Part 8: New Directions in International Political Theory
43. Judgement: A Conceptual Sketch, Friedrich Kratochwil
44. Virtues and Capabilities, Steven Torrente and Harry D. Gould
45. Emotions in International Political Theory, Renee Jeffery
46. The Ethics of Recognition in International Political Theory, Anna Geis
47. Republicanism and International Political Theory, Steven Slaughter
Part 9: For and Against Real Politics and IPT
48. Realist Challenges, Duncan Bell
49. The Marxist Critique of International Political Theory, Andrew Davenport
50. The Case for Ideal Theory, Laura Valentini