Victor Liang

International Relations POL 5900 01[16273] (Kingsborough CC)

Meme Assignment Paper

This meme showcases one of the aspects of the IR theory, Constructivism. This theory in international relations states that the actions, interactions and perceptions of states/individuals shape reality. That everything that we know and understand is socially constructed in which is not objective but an effect of mutual ideas and interests between actors. With this meme, it demonstrates the interaction between the United States and North Korea and how their differences in interests and ideas is socially constructing their relationship.

The meme is based on an example given by Alexander Wendt in 1995, where he illustrated the social construction of reality where even if the United Kingdom had 500 nuclear weapons, it would not pose as much of a threat as it would if North Korea had only 5 nuclear weapons. The nuclear weapons themselves have no meaning until it is given meaning. This meaning is the idea that North Korea could fly those nukes to the United States at any moment and cause mass destruction. The reason why the United Kingdoms is lowkey irrelevant is because the US and UK have good social relations, and this is due to shared understandings between both states. As a result, the chances of UK attacking the US is very low. However, this situation is different with North Korea, if you have been keeping up with global politics, you would understand that the relationship between the US and NK is not that good. This is interesting because if you think about it the relationship between these states is defined by whether they have an intersubjective understanding and it is not created from laws or treaties.

This means that the relationship between the US and NK is not fixed but has the ability to change at any moment. If both states can come to an understanding, the probability that they become good ‘friends’ are high. However, all of this depends on the beliefs and ideas held by both states. This is very different from a realist’s point of view, who argue that states are anarchic, the belief that states can only rely on themselves, which determines their interactions with other states. Constructivists like Alexander Wendt argue that, “anarchy is what states make of it”, meaning that anarchy can be interpreted differently by anyone the same way the US can interpret the 5 North Korean nuclear bombs as very dangerous compared to 500 British nuclear bombs.

This meme exaggerates US’s interpretation of the North Korean threat, however, it demonstrates a good explanation on how our thoughts and actions ‘constructs’ international relations. The idea that our realities is based on our experiences and knowledge and that it is unique to everyone else’s is very fascinating to me. With this in mind, Constructivism is essential to the theory of International Relations as it provides a wide scope of perspectives for anything in this world.

Citations:

Theys, Sarina. “Introducing Constructivism in International Relations Theory.” E-International Relations, 6 Aug. 2018, www.e-ir.info/2018/02/23/introducing-constructivism-in-international-relations-theory.

Self-Assessment: I feel that this is an A, as I followed the requirements. I provided my own meme, explained my meme on how it is related to Constructivism and with a cited quote. Furthermore, the meme is not specified to one thing, it can be interpreted in many ways, see what I did there? That’s constructivism for you. As a result, I should receive full points for this or close to it.