Small islands in international relations scholarship: A dialectic centrality
| Autor | Nancy Wright |
| Cargo | M. Phil. Adjunct Faculty, Pace University, New York City (USA). [wrightnancy272@gmail.com]; [https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6074-2530] |
| Páginas | 7-24 |
* M. Phil. Adjunct Faculty, Pace University, New York City (USA). [wrightnancy272@gmail.com]; [https://orcid.
org/0000-0001-6074-2530]
Recibido: 16 de junio de 2022 / Modificado: 17 de agosto de 2022 / Aprobado: 22 de septiembre de 2022
Para citar este artículo:
Wright, N. (2022). Small Islands in International Relations Scholarship: A Dialectic Centrality. Oasis, 37, pp. 7-24.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18601/16577558.n37.03
Small islands in international
relations scholarship: A dialectic
centrality
Nancy Wright*
ABSTRACT
In the field of internat ional relations (IR), is-
lands are rarely considered, except in specific
contexts which seldom involve dimensions
conventionally considered important. Most
islands, whether sovereign, semi-autonomous,
or completely non-self-governing, are relegat-
ed to the margins of IR scholars. This article
challenges the validity of this marginalization
by presenting and examining both sovereign
and non-sovereign autonomous islands as
international actors. These examples illus-
trate the great paradox of islands, namely that
throughout history, islands have functioned
as pivotal points rather than as afterthoughts,
and, because of that central role, islands em-
body syntheses of culture and politics that
constitute new identities, and in some cases
unique capabilities. A key example is artificial
islands, which illustrate a further overlooked
complexity by exerting autonomy free of
sovereignty. Finally, islands, especially small
island countries, both reinforce and challenge
standard IR theories by being at once both self-
contained and by necessity integrated globally.
All of these characteristics constitute a dialectic
centrality, in which islands, self-contained yet
marginalized, play a central role in interna-
tional relations. This article brings these islands
collectively to the forefront, with a view to il-
lustrating their currently underestimated im-
portance in the discipline of IR as global actors.
This article brings these islands collectively to
the forefront, with a view to illustrating their
currently underestimated importance in the
discipline of IR as global actors.
Nancy Wright
8
OASIS, ISSN: 1657-7558, E-ISSN: 2346-2132, N° 37, Enero - Junio de 2023, pp. 7-24
Key words: International relations; small
sovereign countries; islands; sovereignty; au-
tonomy.
Islas pequeñas en relaciones
internacionales: una
centralidad dialéctica
RESUMEN
En la erudición de las relaciones internaciona-
les (RI), las islas rara vez se consideran, excepto
en contextos específicos, y esos contextos rara
vez involucran dimensiones que convencional-
mente se consideran importantes. La mayoría
de las islas, ya sean soberanas, semiautónomas
o completamente no autónomas, están rele-
gadas a los márgenes de la erudición de las RI.
Este artículo desafía la validez de esta margina-
ción al presentar y examinar islas autónomas
tanto soberanas como no soberanas como ac-
tores internacionales. Estos ejemplos ilustran
la gran paradoja de las islas, a saber, que a lo
largo de la historia estas han funcionado como
puntos centrales en lugar de ideas secundarias
y, debido a ese papel central, las islas encarnan
la síntesis de la cultura y la política que consti-
tuyen nuevas identidades. Las islas artificiales
aportan una mayor complejidad pasada por
alto al ejercer una autonomía libre de sobe-
ranía. Finalmente, las islas, especialmente los
países insulares pequeños, refuerzan y desafían
las teorías estándar de relaciones internaciona-
les al ser a la vez autónomos y por necesidad
integrados en la globalización. Todas estas
características constituyen una centralidad
dialéctica, en la que las islas, autosuficientes
pero marginadas, juegan un papel central en
las relaciones internacionales. Este artículo trae
estos territorios colectivamente al frente, con
el fin de ilustrar su importancia actualmente
subestimada en la disciplina de RI como ac-
tores globales.
Pala bras cla ve: relaciones internaciona-
les; pequeños países soberanos; islas; soberanía;
autonomía.
INTRODUCTION
Islands are a collect ive dialectic. They are self-
contained; yet they constitute a crossroads
for all those arriving at their shores. They are
associated with freedom, with water as their
only neighbor; yet their inhabitants must be
constantly aware of their resource and area
limits. Some are quite remote; yet the most
isolated connect points of commerce, even
in a globalized economy that seems impervi-
ous to geography. Moreover, artificial islands
defy the same sovereignty they lack by mak-
ing sovereignty irrelevant for their purposes
and the purposes and goals of sovereign states
and non-state actors alike. This article chal-
lenges the validity of this marginalization in
IR scholarship by presenting and examining
both sovereign and non-sovereign autonomous
islands as international actors. The examples
presented herein illustrate the great paradox
of islands, namely that throughout history,
they have functioned as pivotal points rather
than as afterthoughts, and as a result, islands
embody syntheses of culture and politics that
constitute new identities, and in some cases,
unique capabilities.
This article seeks to meet the major chal-
lenge of directing more attention from within
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