The War in Ukraine

Requirements:

Exams are to be typed and single spaced. You should submit your exam as a Word document, and you should put your name on the document. You are to work on this independently of any other student in the class. Your exam should avoid grammatical errors, run on or incomplete sentences, and long paragraphs.

If you use materials from the assigned readings (either a direct quote or not) include the author’s name and a page number (M&M page 3) or insert a footnote with the page number. When you include materials from the lectures you need to include a reference as well. You are free to include additional research, but no outside research is required for this assignment. If you use materials not assigned in the class, you must include a full and complete reference. Any papers found to be plagiarized with receive a zero. Please refer to the writing guidelines posted to Canvas for additional information.

Your exam should be at least two single spaced pages. You are free to write more, but your paper should not be more than three pages. Given the fact that these are essay exams, if you submit merely a paragraph as an answer to an essay question you are probably not including enough information to receive full credit.

Answer two of the following three essay questions.

The War in Ukraine has had a significant impact on international relations. Why did this war start? What were the causes and motivations of this war? How has the war evolved since February? How would the different theoretical traditions (Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism) explain the start of the war and the evolution of the war? Which theoretical tradition is most persuasive in terms of explaining this war? (Be sure to explain why you think one theory is more persuasive.)

Out of the major theoretical traditions (Liberalism, Constructivism, Feminism, Marxism/Neo-Marxism, and Realism) which one is the most persuasive in terms of explaining and understanding events in international relations? Does one theory provide more insights in explaining global problems? Use three different examples from history (discussed in Chapter 2) as evidence to support your claim. (You will need to demonstrate that you understand each theory in your essay. Hence you must explain each of the theoretical traditions listed above.)

M&M (our textbook) discusses the Treaty of Westphalia. Why does M&M suggest that the Treaty of Westphalia is important to global politics? Explain how the Treaty of Westphalia changed international relations. What is most significant about the Treaty? Was the Treaty of Westphalia relevant during the Cold War? Is the Treaty of Westphalia still relevant today? [In your answer provide an example of how the treaty is or is not relevant in contemporary times.] Which theoretical tradition is most supportive of the Treaty of Westphalia and why?

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