American Exceptionalism: An Idea That Made A Nation And Remade The World PDF
Preview American Exceptionalism: An Idea That Made A Nation And Remade The World
American Exceptionalism How does American exceptionalism shape American foreign policy? Conven- tional wisdom states that American exceptionalism comes in two varieties – the exemplary version and the missionary version. Being exceptional, experts in U.S. foreign policy argue, means that you either withdraw from the world like an isolated but inspiring “city upon a hill,” or that you are called upon to actively lead the rest of the world to a better future. In her book, Hilde Eliassen Restad challenges this assumption, arguing that U.S. history has displayed a remarkably constant foreign policy tradition, which she labels unilateral internationalism. The United States, Restad argues, has not vacillated between an “exemplary” and a “missionary” identity. Instead, the United States developed an exceptionalist identity that, while idealizing the United States as an exemplary “city upon a hill,” more often than not errs on the side of the missionary crusade in its foreign policy. Utilizing the latest histori- ography in the study of U.S. foreign relations, the book updates political science scholarship and sheds new light on the role American exceptionalism has played – and continues to play – in shaping America’s role in the world. This work will be of great interest to students and scholars of U.S. foreign policy, security studies, and American politics. Hilde Eliassen Restad is Associate Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at Bjørknes College in Oslo, Norway. A Fulbright alumna, she has a Ph.D. in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia, and is frequently used as a com- mentator on U.S. politics in Norway. Routledge studies in U.S. foreign policy Edited by Inderjeet Parmar University of Manchester and John Dumbrell University of Durham This new series sets out to publish high quality works by leading and emerging scholars critically engaging with United States Foreign Policy. The series wel- comes a variety of approaches to the subject and draws on scholarship from international relations, security studies, international political economy, foreign policy analysis, and contemporary international history. Subjects covered include the role of administrations and institutions, the media, think tanks, ideologues and intellectuals, elites, transnational corpora- tions, public opinion, and pressure groups in shaping foreign policy; U.S. rela- tions with individual nations, with global regions and global institutions; and America’s evolving strategic and military policies. The series aims to provide a range of books – from individual research mono- graphs and edited collections to textbooks and supplemental reading – for scholars, researchers, policy analysts, and students. United States Foreign Policy and The United States and NATO since National Identity in the 21st Century 9/11 Edited by Kenneth Christie The transatlantic alliance renewed Ellen Hallams New Directions in U.S. Foreign Soft Power and U.S. Foreign Policy Policy Theoretical, historical and Edited by Inderjeet Parmar, contemporary perspectives Linda B. Miller and Mark Ledwidge Edited by Inderjeet Parmar and Michael Cox America’s ‘Special Relationships’ Foreign and domestic aspects of the The U.S. Public and American politics of alliance Foreign Policy Edited by John Dumbrell and Edited by Andrew Johnstone and Axel R. 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Lynch and Nicolas Bouchet Constructing U.S. Foreign Policy The curious case of Cuba Local Interests and American David Bernell Foreign Policy Why international interventions fail Race and U.S.Foreign Policy Karl Sandstrom The African-A merican foreign affairs network The Obama Administration’s Mark Ledwidge Nuclear Weapon Strategy The promises of Prague Gender Ideologies and Military Aiden James Warren Labor Markets in the U.S. Saskia Stachowitsch Obama’s Foreign Policy Ending the War on Terror Prevention, Pre-E mption and the Michelle Bentley and Jack Holland Nuclear Option From Bush to Obama United States–Africa Security Aiden Warren Relations Terrorism, regional security and Corporate Power and Globalization national interests in U.S. Foreign Policy Edited by Kelechi A. Kalu and Edited by Ronald W. Cox George Klay Kieh, Jr. Obama and the World West Africa and the U.S. War on New directions in US foreign policy Terror Second edition Edited by George Klay Kieh and Edited by Inderjeet Parmar, Kelechi Kalu Linda B. Miller and Mark Ledwidge Constructing America’s Freedom The United States, Iraq and the Agenda for the Middle East Kurds Oz Hassan Mohammed Shareef The Origins of the War on Terror Weapons of Mass Destruction and Lebanon, Libya and American U.S. Foreign Policy intervention in the Middle East The strategic use of a concept Mattia Toaldo Michelle Bentley American Images of China Presidential Rhetoric Identity, power, policy Constructing crises, fast and slow Oliver Turner Wesley Widmaier North Korea–U.S. Relations under American Exceptionalism Kim Jong II An idea that made a nation and Ramon Pacheco Pardo remade the world Hilde Eliassen Restad Congressional Policymaking in the Post- Cold War Era The President, the State and the Sino- U.S. relations Cold War Joseph Gagliano Comparing the foreign policies of Truman and Reagan U.S. Foreign Policy and China James Bilsland Bush’s first term Guy Roberts American Exceptionalism An idea that made a nation and remade the world Hilde Eliassen Restad First published 2015 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2015 Hilde Eliassen Restad The right of Hilde Eliassen Restad to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Restad, Hilde. American exceptionalism: an idea that made a nation and remade the world / Hilde Restad. pages cm. – (Routledge studies in US foreign policy) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Exceptionalism–United States. 2. National characteristics, American. 3. United States–Exceptionalism. 4. United States–Foreign relations– 20th century. 5. United States–Foreign relations–21st century. I. Title. E169.1.R475 2014 973–dc23 2014024840 ISBN: 978-0-415-81751-6 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-203-48543-9 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear To my mother Mette, my father Jan, and my brother Jon- Magnus. This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface x Acknowledgments xii 1 How to be an American 1 PART I A distinct nation is born 25 2 Challenging the identity dichotomy 27 3 Challenging the foreign policy dichotomy 56 PART II A mission to lead the world 97 4 Rethinking the “turn-around” theory 99 5 The triumph of Henry Cabot Lodge over Woodrow Wilson 128 6 Hegemony vs. multilateralism 153 PART III Resisting the laws of history 195 7 American exceptionalism reaffirmed 197 8 American exceptionalism today 225 Bibliography 241 Index 260
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