Georgetown University

By employing an historical perspective, this course aims (1) to provide an overview of the different legal regimes or paradigms that have existed in western international relations since the “Age of Discovery”; (2) to examine when, how, and why changes occurred in international legal thinking and practice; and, most critically, (3) to explore the contingency and indeterminacy of international law—the values, expectations, and implicit norms that have developed over time and come to undergird international affairs today.