Sample Essay #1

I am declaring a major in International Politics, with a concentration on Security Studies.

My primary interest in pursuing this course of study is to examine security conflicts in the developing world with specific regard to ethnic conflict and minority crises. I will examine the underlying political and economic causes of ethnic conflict, including weak or failed states, authoritarian leadership, history of oppression, and poor distribution of resources, and the catalysts for security threats, such as revolution, secessionist movements, or discriminatory government policies, such as cultural or linguistic regulation. I will also look at the rise of non-state actors such as terrorist groups or revolutionary fronts as prime contributors to ethnic crises. By the conclusion of my academic studies, I hope to be able to explain why developing countries are more prone to ethnically-triggered security threats, define what the most successful methods for handling ethnic conflict are as shown by history, predict future security lapses in the developing world, and prescribe policy to avoid genocide, state collapse, and oppression in ethnically diverse countries.

            Key questions I will address include:

• What is ethnicity, and how is it related to nationality, citizenship, and the state?
• What is the role of national self-determination in threatening security?
• What political and colonial patterns most often inspire ethnic conflict?
• Which theory is most credible in illuminating the causes of ethnic conflict? (Here, I am particularly interested in the myth-symbol complex)
• How should the state protect ethnic minorities, especially with regard to linguistic geography and religious practice?
• What is the future of international security in this age of globalization and increased human movement across the globe?

Regionally, I intend to focus on the Muslim world. This includes the Near East as well as countries with a Muslim majority, such as Indonesia, or countries with an active Muslim minority, such as India. Although this concentration may seem large, it is necessary in order to fully understand ethnic conflict, which occurs where Muslims are both the majority and the minority. I am aiming for proficiency in Arabic, and am planning on spending the fall semester of my junior year in Amman, Jordan. This location is ideal for my studies because I will be exposed to elements of religion (a politically powerful Christian minority), ethnicity (large numbers of displaced Palestinians and Kurds), and language (a vibrant Francophone presence), and I will be able to observe the effects of development and economic growth on ethnic stability. Although Jordan is an anomaly in the Muslim world with regard to the country’s progressiveness, it is surrounded by volatility and inequality, and this will provide insight into the real security issues of the Near East and their underlying causes. 

            I intend to primarily take International Politics courses relating to ethnicity, immigration, and economics, as well a those specifically focusing on the Muslim world, and I will supplement my major studies with a certificate in International Development. I believe that security, development, and ethnicity have an undeniable intersection, and I look forward to examining this throughout my remaining three years at Georgetown.