Harry Potter and International Relations: Extra Credit Paper

Jonathan Beatty

Professor Craig

World Politics 001H

Date of Submission: 12 December 2011

Harry Potter and International Relations

What better way to approach the subject of International Relations than to speak on the subject of Harry Potter and the Harry Potter book series. The following paper will connect your International Relations ideas and bring you into the world of Dark Lords, and open your mind to the wonderful world of Harry Potter.

For those who do not understand or have not read the Harry Potter books, please read the following summaries to understand this paper, otherwise you will be lost: http://www.wikisummaries.org/Harry_Potter

Realism and International Relations:

Realism, as defined by Goldstein and Pevehouse in International Relations, “is a school of thought that explains international relations in terms of power” (G & P, Page 43). In Realism, the Nation-States are the main actors in International politics. In Harry Potter, the “Nation-States” are the Good Side with Hogwarts, and the Evil Side and the Dark Arts. One of the main sections of realism is the idea of survival. Survival is when the international system does not have a government, a worldwide state of anarchy. In this state of anarchy, international politics is a battle of power between the Nation-States. Throughout the Harry Potter books, the Ministry of Magic is not a strong central authority. By Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the Ministry of Magic has become corrupt and overrun by Death Eaters. The Wizarding universe is thrown into a state of anarchy with the only apparent international regulator, the Ministry of Magic, corrupt with little influence. The power struggle the Wizarding world is between dark and light. In Realism, the Nation-States pursue self-interest rationally. A Nation-State cannot rely on another Nation-State to ensure survival. This is shown in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when Harry, Ron, and Hermione are hunting for Horcruxes. At one point, Harry can only rely on Hermione when hunting for the Horcruxes because of Ron’s mental break. From Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, whose main purpose is to defeat Voldemort and the Dark side, can only rely on themselves as the good side to defeat the dark side. In the state of anarchy, the wizards are unlikely to choose a side, so the good side can only rely on themselves.

Neorealism, as defined by Goldstein and Pevehouse in International Relations, “explains patterns of international events in terms of the system structure – rather than in terms of the internal makeup of individual state” (G & P, Page 56). Also known as structural realism, the international system acts as a constraint on the behavior of state behavior. Neorealism builds on the ideas of realism. In this system, Nation-States that follow within a certain range are able to survive. In the Harry Potter wizarding world, the structure of inter-wizard behavior creates certain rules that, if followed, allow wizards to survive. Here are 10 “norms” I was able to deduce after reading the Harry Potter series.

1. Be extremely talented at wizardry/Be a female.

2. Be the receiver of a prophecy/Be a male.

3. Do not be too powerful because if you are too powerful, you will die. (i.e. Dumbledore and Voldemort).

4. Do not attempt to kill someone and in the process make that person a Horcrux. That is just plain stupid.

5. Do not become emotionally involved with anyone. In a major battle, there is a high likelihood that either you or your significant other will be injured or die.

6. Fail at a major task and then stay on the sidelines (i.e. Draco Malfoy).

7. If you help an important wizard, be careful because people will want you dead.

8. Stay away from the birthplace of evil lords because evil anacondas await you.

9. If you are known as a singular name (i.e. Dumbledore, Voldemort) or by a body part (Mad-Eye Moody), there is a high likelihood you will die.

10. As long as you have an invisibility cloak, you can get out of most situations.

Liberalism, as defined by Goldstein and Pevehouse in International Relations is when, “[states have a] mutual dependence… as economic interdependence” (G & P, Page 87). In Liberalism the determinants of the behavior of states is based on the preferences of states. Throughout the Harry Potter series, Voldemort’s preferential way to pass time was plotting and attempting to kill Harry Potter. His behavior is based on his preferences because he continues to attempt to kill Harry Potter even after he finds out Harry is protected by love. On the topic on interdependence and cooperation achieving peace in liberalism, once all the wizards of the good side put aside their differences they were able to beat the dark side.

Neoliberalism, also known as institutional liberalism, builds on the ideas of liberalism. In neoliberalism international institutions can help to facilitate Nation-States to become interdependent in the world system. In the Harry Potter universe, the Ministry of Magic, while ineffective, helped to foster relationships between wizards on respective sides of the Wizard war.

Constructivism, as defined by Goldstein and Pevehouse in International Relations, “[is] a movement in International Relations theory that examines how changing international norms and actors’ identities help shape the content of state interests” (G & P, Page 502). Also known as social constructivism, is when International politics is shaped by persuasive ideas, collective values, culture, and social identities. In the wizarding world, it is affected by persuasive ideas. The ideas from Voldemort and the Death Eaters affect the wizarding world through dark marks in the sky and extensive coverage in the Daily Prophet. These create fear and incentive to join the dark side in order to survive. The wizarding world’s collective values share the ideology of survival with wizards joining whatever side they feel will win in order to ensure survival.

Through using the Harry Potter world, the theories of International Relations become clear. With the Harry Potter world being a complex place, using International Relations theory helps to decode all of the complexities and helps to outline the behavior of characters by thinking of them as Nation-States.

Bibliography

Adler, Emmanuel. "Seizing the Middle Ground." European Journal of International Relations 3 (1997): 319. Print.

Goldstein, Joshua S., and Jon C. Pevehouse. International Relations. Boston: Pearson Longman, 2011. Print.

Harry Potter Novels