Discussing concepts for a Brazilian school of international relations: an epistemological debate - Audrey Alejandro and Amado Cervo's formulations

Authors

  • André Sanches Siqueira Campos Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho
  • Tullo Vigevani Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.2447-9020.intelligere.2020.178403

Keywords:

Critical theory, Concepts, Eurocentrism, Global South, Scientific reserach, Internacionalization

Abstract

This article starts from a review proposal of the book “Western Dominance in International Relations? The Internationalisation of IR in Brazil and India”, written by Audrey Alejandro. The aim of this article is to discuss some ideas related to the possibility of the internationalisation of the Social Sciences of the Global South knowledge. We focus on IR theory and the fact that it would not be conditioned by Western dominance. Paradoxically, for her, the reproduction of critical and anti-Eurocentric discourses reinforces the very Eurocentric theorization that has been criticized. In this sense, Amado Cervo's intellectual contribution on the relations between concepts and theories in the teaching of IR in Brazil can help to reflect on   the paradox raised by Alejandro. In this article, we put the debate of both authors in an analytical and comparative perspective. According to Alejandro, the idea of a Brazilian (and Indian) theory is not explicit, but she also suggests that there are important basis for its developments. According to Amado Cervo's interpretation, we conclude that theory has instrumental use, but this does not eliminate the need to develop explanatory theories, differently from what he suggests. At the same time, we recognize the importance of concepts originating from cognitive history. Regarding a Brazilian theory of IR, we consider that Alejandro's answer is a middle way. There is not a full theoretical design, but there are good backgrounds to progress.

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Published

2020-12-29

How to Cite

Discussing concepts for a Brazilian school of international relations: an epistemological debate - Audrey Alejandro and Amado Cervo’s formulations. (2020). Intelligere, 10, 91-110. https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.2447-9020.intelligere.2020.178403