Introduction

• Published in: International feminist journal of politics 2019-02, Vol.21 (1), p.4-8
• Main Author: Basu, Soumita
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Diplomacy; Female roles; Feminism; Intellectuals; International relations; Multilateralism; Narratives; Policy making; Towns; Wives
• ISSN: 1461-6742; 1468-4470
• DOI: 10.1080/14616742.2019.1562672

This special section on “Feminist Perspectives on Diplomacy” builds on the conversations that were initiated at the workshop that preceded the sixth International Feminist Journal of Politics conference held in New Delhi in April 2017. The theme for this annual conference was “Walking the Talk: Feminist Reflections on International Practices.” There were two main reasons for focusing on diplomacy – as an international practice – in the pre-conference workshop. First, there appears to be a gap in the feminist International Relations (IR) literature on diplomacy, one that needs to be addressed in light of the centrality of diplomatic work in international relations. In an early feminist IR text, Enloe (1990) had brought attention to the unpaid and largely unrecognized labor provided by “diplomatic” wives. This analysis is widely cited in subsequent feminist IR literature. Yet, in contrast to cumulative research that looks into the gendered nature of the international policymaking terrain, that tends to marginalize women's contributions and feminist concerns (on multilateral fora, for instance, see relevant contributions in Caglar et al. [2013]; Meyer and Prügl [1999]; Rai and Waylen [2008]), the practice of diplomacy and the nature of diplomatic corps per se have not received similar sustained attention. For feminist narratives on diplomacy, scholars have had to rely primarily on historical accounts of the diverse roles that women have played in the diplomatic sphere. However, two recently published volumes – Aggestam and Towns (2018a) and Cassidy (2017) - suggest a growing interest in the subject, and offer substantive resources on diplomacy for feminist IR scholars; these are reviewed by Catriona Standfield in the Book Review section. The 2017 workshop and this Special Section may be seen as contributions to this emerging discussion.