The price of peace : a narrative study of two Aotearoa New Zealand civil society activists for nuclear disarmament.

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dc.contributor.authorColl, Marcus James
dc.date.accessioned2024-05-29T02:41:32Z
dc.date.available2024-05-29T02:41:32Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.description.abstractThis thesis investigates how the personal narratives of activists shape nuclear disarmament efforts, arguing for the transformative potential of a narrative approach in International Relations scholarship. Since the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, nuclear weapons have posed an existential threat to the survival of our world. Civil society has consistently challenged the notion that nuclear weapons provide security and has been behind many international initiatives calling for global nuclear disarmament. While impactful, little is known about the personal experiences and perspectives of the anti-nuclear activists who make up this larger collective. Using a narrative approach, this study explores the experiences of two individuals within a small grassroots non-governmental organisation, the Disarmament and Security Centre (DSC), run from their home in Christchurch, New Zealand. This husband-and-wife team formed a unique partnership; a music teacher turned peace campaigner, and a retired British Royal Navy Commander who once operated nuclear weapons. In advocating for nuclear disarmament, these two reached positions of significant influence at home, abroad, and at the United Nations. This research delves into how the DSC’s actions mirrored the intertwining of the personal and public lives of its founders within the context of a small state, New Zealand, the only Western-allied nation to formally legislate against nuclear weapons. The theoretical and methodological framework of this narrative study required extensive fieldwork and immersion into the participants lives and backgrounds. Investigation of civil society at this most granular level generated a deeper understanding of the complexities and dynamics of the lives of activists in the peace and anti-nuclear movement. Using narratives as a vehicle, a complex interplay of politics, gender, dissidence, spirituality, and cross-cultural engagement is revealed. Exploration of how anti-nuclear activists perceive themselves, and impact others, also demonstrated the challenges, successes, and motivations of individuals within social movements. Through in-depth storytelling, this thesis argues for a more holistic, nuanced view of how activists shape and are shaped by the movements they lead, offering a transformative perspective on the role of personal narratives in International Relations.
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10092/107128
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.26021/15375
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoen
dc.rightsAll Rights Reserved
dc.rights.urihttps://canterbury.libguides.com/rights/theses
dc.subjectanti-nuclear activism, civil society, gender, hibakusha, Japan, narrative politics, New Zealand, non-governmental organisations, nuclear disarmament, peace movements
dc.titleThe price of peace : a narrative study of two Aotearoa New Zealand civil society activists for nuclear disarmament.
dc.typeTheses / Dissertations
thesis.degree.disciplinePolitical Science
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Canterbury
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophy
uc.collegeFaculty of Arts
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