ABSTRACT
This Introduction offers a brief historiographical and theoretical context for the chapters that follow. It engages with the most important theories and concepts in famine studies, moving from an understanding of famine causation in terms of food availability decline to entitlements failures, to failures in response and accountability, and finally to a new agenda which we propose around the concept of ‘the politics of famine’. Based on the findings and perspectives presented in the chapters, the Introduction presents a novel theoretical framework within what we call the current ‘political turn’ in famine studies. We argue that there are four interlinked dimensions within the politics of famine: first, the role of political decision-making that, intentionally or unintentionally, directly contributes to causing famine; second, political failures to prevent famine from happening; third, the politics of humanitarian aid; and fourth, the politicization of famine memory, which in turn influences how famines are addressed in the present and in the future.
