The Fragmentation of Gender Orders in Contemporary Wars

This article makes the argument that the character of gender order shapes and is shaped by war and that different types of contemporary warfare construct different patterns of gender order. It contends that the conjunction of different types of war, especially `new wars', in the contemporary period has led to a fragmentation of gender orders. It develops this argument through four dimensions of war – narratives, roles, harms, and political economy – and applies the framework to the war in Ukraine for illustration. It concludes that the UN Security Council's Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda fails to take fragmentation into account.