Myths and Mythographers in IR
In lifting out and examining the centrality of myth in International Relations (IR)—and exposing us all as mythographers in the process— this volume forces us to confront in new ways the disciplinary politics of truth and power, objectivity and the limits of knowledge, and the histories and goals of what we do.
Our own past work has confronted and exposed myths that wield oppressive power in IR even as they reveal their own weaknesses with every retelling, such as appeasement and isolationism (Lynch 1999), and European nationhood, its emergence from poetic whimsy, and its resistance to ‘trans-nationalism’ (Loriaux 2008). What is to be understood by exposing the prevalence and workings of myth? And how do we become more reflexive in understanding that mythographers are not only ‘out there’ but also imbricated in the very essence of our work as political analysts, commentators, and critics?
More on the topic Myths and Mythographers in IR:
- Here Be Dragons! Of Myths and Mythographers
- Analytical Dimension 3: Functions of Myths
- Myths fascinate—rightly so. This is what they are supposed to do.
- Deciphering Development: The Productive Power of Myths
- In a secularised, yet postsecular world, myths have again found a new refuge.
- Myths are part and parcel of contemporary international politics,
- Analytical Dimension 2: Myths as Different Forms of Narrative
- Where do we discover myths in International Relations (IR)? How can we identify, reiterate, translate, explain, and interpret them?
- Myths, Post-Structuralism and Power Applied in International Relations Analysis
- Remixing Methods: Methodological Considerations for a Critical Study of IR Myths
- Levi-Strauss and the Structural Analysis of Myths
- CHAPTER 6 How to Study Myths: Methodological Demands and Discoveries