Asia and the World

This subject is not offered in 2014.

24 contact hours plus non-contact study hours, estimated total time committment: 120 hours

Entry into the Master of International Relations, Master of International Relations or Master of Arts (Asian Societies).

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For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This is an advanced introduction to international politics in Asia. The subject explores the shift of global power to Asia and and provides a broad coverage of the regions relations with the great powers and international/regional institutions, including important issues like democratisation, economic globalisation and security. The course consists of four sections. The first section provides historical reviews of developments in Asia through understanding the roles played by external powers, and how the Asian powers are aligned both vertically (historically) and horizontally (across a specific historical juncture). The second section reviews Asia’s governance structure with both global and regional institutions like the UN, WTO, ASEAN, APEC etc. Section Three examines the issue of economic globalisation after the 1990s, particularly the rise of China and India. Special attention is also paid to Japan’s bubble economy and the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. These seminars also cover Asia’s responses to economic globalisation by looking at particular reforms at the state level and initiatives at the regional level. The last section investigates topical interests related to Asia: democratisation, nuclear issues, the environment, and energy security.

• Developing a critical understanding of the key issues and challenges faced by Asian states in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
• Developing an understanding of the relationship between developments in Asia and international/regional politics, and how to theorise this relationship.
• Developing a critical understanding of the debates related to the region, its institutions and important issues in the ageof globalisation.
• Developing an understanding of Australia’s past, present, and future role in Asia.

A class presentation, 10% (due during semester. Each student is required to give a presentation btween weeks 3-12), ten 200-word reflective essays (based on weekly readings), 4% each (40% in total) (due weeks 3-12), a briefing paper, 1000 words, 20% (due mid semester) and a 2-hour examination 30% (during the examination period).

Reading materials supplied by the Institute.

Muthiah Alagappa (ed.), Asian Security Practice: Material and Ideational Influences (Stanford University Press)

Other recommended books include (choose one): Michael K. Connors, Rémy Davison, Jörn Dosch (eds.), The New Global Politics of the Asia-Pacific (Routledge); Mark Beeson, Regionalism and Globalisation in East Asia (Palgrave Macmillan).

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

• Applying research skills and critical methods to a field of inquiry
• Developing persuasive arguments on a given topic
• Communicating oral and written arguments and ideas effectively
• Developing cross-cultural understanding

This subject is a compulsory component of the Master of International Relations and the Master of Arts (Asian Societies) (teach-out).