For millions of people across the world, violent conflict remains a persistent and tragic reality. In this course, we interrogate how issues of peace and conflict both imprint themselves on and are interpreted through Australian political life. We will look at the “scripts” that shape how Australians understand war, consider the conditioning role that “perspective” plays in those scripts, and extend the concepts we cover to address contemporary “confrontations” in global politics. The course will draw on a range of different texts and materials, from academic journal articles to novels and museum exhibitions. It will also tackle a series of historical and contemporary issues, from the colonisation of this land, to the role played by the AIF in World War One, to AUKUS. We will, along the way, be challenged to confront, on the one hand, the relationship between the Australian state and war, and, on the other, the part we as citizens play in reproducing and/or contesting that relationship. The overarching question, then, that this class encourages us to address is: How does Peace & Conflict Studies help us to think about violent conflict today, and what does it look like when viewed from Canberra?
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Develop and apply critical thinking skills so as to engage the academic literature on peace and conflict;
- Extend that literature to address contemporary issues in international relations;
- Trace and problematise the role that Australia plays in armed conflict around the globe; and
- Map the relation between the Australian state and war as it manifests in how people encounter Canberra.
- Demonstrate the ability to lead critical discussions on issues relating to peace and conflict.
Work Integrated Learning
Other
Field visit to the Australian War Memorial with guided tour; lecture from ICRC representative. The aim in both instances is to encourage students to examine how issues relating to peace and conflict are narrativised and addressed in contemporary Australia.
Indicative Assessment
Photo Hunt (1500 words) (30) [LO 2,3,4]
Exhibition (10) [LO 3,4,5]
Essay (2500 words) (60) [LO 1,2,3]
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Workload
This course comprises some 130 hours of activity over 12 weeks, including some 24 hours of lectures or an equivalent activity and some 12 hours of tutorials or equivalent activity. The course comprises a maximum of 6000 words of assessment or the equivalent. Please note this is a general guide, averaged over the semester and the final hours ultimately depend on the individual's ability in reading and writing.
Prescribed Texts
There are no core texts for this class: students will be assigned a different set of short readings each week. These will mostly be chapters or excerpts from classic texts or short journal articles. Excerpts from novels and podcasts and movies will also feature.
Preliminary Reading
Excerpts from Joan Beaumont, Broken Nation: Australians in the Great War (Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2013).
Swati Parashar, 'What wars and war bodies know about international relations', Cambridge Review of International Relations 26:4 (2013): 615-30.
Christine Sylvester, 'War Experiences/War Practices/War Theory', Millennium 40:3 (2012): 483-503.
Assumed Knowledge
Students should have an interest in Peace & Conflict studies, and, ideally, some background in International Relations.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 14
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $4680 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $6360 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9246 | 21 Jul 2025 | 28 Jul 2025 | 31 Aug 2025 | 24 Oct 2025 | In Person | N/A |