Sensible Politics: Visualizing International Relations - Softcover

Callahan, William A.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0190071745 ISBN 13: 9780190071745

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2020

Synopsis

Visual images are everywhere in international politics. But how are we to understand them? In Sensible Politics, William A. Callahan uses his expertise in theory and filmmaking to explore not only what visuals mean, but also how visuals can viscerally move and connect us in "affective communities of sense." The book's rich analysis of visual images (photographs, film, art) and visual artifacts (maps, veils, walls, gardens, cyberspace) shows how critical scholarship needs to push beyond issues of identity and security to appreciate the creative politics of social-ordering and world-ordering. Here "sensible politics" isn't just sensory, but looks beyond icons and ideology to the affective politics of everyday life. It challenges our Eurocentric understanding of international politics by exploring the meaning and impact of visuals from Asia and the Middle East. Sensible Politics offers a unique approach to politics that allows us to not only think visually, but also feel visually-and creatively act visually for a multisensory appreciation of politics.

About this title

About the Author

William A. Callahan is Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science. His recent books include China Dreams: 20 Visions of the Future (OUP, 2015) and China: The Pessoptimist Nation (OUP: 2010). Callahan also makes documentary films: "China Dreams" was broadcast on KCET (Los Angeles) in 2015, "Toilet Adventures" (2015) was shortlisted for a major award by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, and "Great Walls" (2019) juxtaposes Trump's wall with the Great Wall of China.

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0190071745
• ISBN 13: 9780190071745
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 368