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A material turn in International Relations: the 4x4, intervention and resistance

Mac Ginty, Roger

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Abstract

This article explores how analysis of material objects offers insights into international intervention and reactions to that intervention. Building on studies that examine the 4x4 as emblematic of intervention, the article argues that the 4x4 can also be seen as an object of resistance and agency. To do so, it uses the case study of 4x4 usage in Darfur and draws on primary data including interviews and a UN security incident database. The article is mindful of the limitations of a ‘material turn’ in the study of International Relations, especially in relation to how it might encourage us to overlook agency and structural power. While finding new materialism arguments largely convincing, the case study encourages a note of caution and proposes the notion of ‘materialism+’, which allows for the further investigation of the human/non-human interface, but is circumspect about tendencies towards neophilia, dematerialism, and posthumanism.

Citation

Mac Ginty, R. (2017). A material turn in International Relations: the 4x4, intervention and resistance. Review of International Studies, 43(05), 855-874. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0260210517000146

Journal Article Type Article
Online Publication Date Jun 7, 2017
Publication Date Dec 1, 2017
Deposit Date Sep 10, 2018
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Review of International Studies
Print ISSN 0260-2105
Electronic ISSN 1469-9044
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 43
Issue 05
Pages 855-874
DOI https://doi.org/10.1017/s0260210517000146

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