This chapter is divided into three main parts: firstly, a sketch of the
origins of critical theory; secondly, an examination of the political
nature of knowledge claims in international relations; and, thirdly, a
detailed account of critical international theory’s attempt to place
questions of community at the centre of the study of international
relations. This will provide an opportunity to discuss how critical
theory reflects on the events of September 11 and the subsequent ‘war
on terrorism’.