Reexamining the Logic of Practicality
Three main arguments are put forward in response the above critiques. First, far from denying the importance of reflexivity, the logic of practicality draws attention to its unspoken underpinnings. Even the most calculated diplomatic tactics are rooted in embodied know-how, which while rarely discussed, nonetheless has a structuring effect. Second, explaining change and extraordinary events is a challenge well within the analytical capabilities of the logic of practicality. In fact, misconduct and changing notions of common sense are attributable to the contingent and multiple nature of the logic of practicality. Thirdly, the practice turn in IR is an extension, not a rejection, of the linguistic turn and interpretivism. Ultimately, forefronting the logic of practicality is a way to focus analysis on underlying mechanisms of inequality and social domination, in keeping with the political sociology of Pierre Bourdieu.