Engaging the "animal Question" in International Relations

Abstract

By raising the "animal question" in International Relations (IR), this essay seeks to contribute not only to put animals and human-animal relations on the IR agenda, but also to move the field in a less anthropocentric and non-speciesist direction. More specifically, the essay does three things: First, it makes animals visible within some of the main empirical realms conventionally treated as the subject matter of IR. Second, it reflects on IR's neglect of animals and human-animal relations in relation to both how IR has been constituted as a field and the broader socio-cultural context in which it is embedded. Third, it explores various ways in which IR scholars can start incorporating and take animals and human-animal relations seriously in studies on international relations.