American Diplomacy, 1900-50 (WFL Series)

For over 50 years, Kennan's "American Diplomacy" has been a standard work on American foreign policy. Drawing on his considerable diplomatic experience, he offers an overview & critique of the foreign policy of an emerging great power whose claims to rightness often spill over into self-righteousness, whose ambitions conflict with power realities, whose judgmentalism precludes the interests of other states, & whose domestic politics frequently prevent prudent policies & result in overstretch. Keenly aware of the dangers of military intervention & the negative effects of domestic politics on foreign policy, he identifies troubling inconsistencies in the areas between actions & ideals--even when the strategies in question turned out to be decided successes. As America grapples with its new role as one power among many--rather than as the "indispensable nation" that sees "further into the future"--Kennan's perceptive analysis of the past is all the more relevant. Today, as then, the pressing issue of how to wield power with prudence & responsibility remains, & his cautions about the cost of hubris are still timely. Refreshingly candid, "American Diplomacy" cuts to the heart of policy issues that continue to be hotly debated today. "These celebrated lectures, delivered at the University of Chicago in 1950, were for many years the most widely read account of American diplomacy in the first half of the 20th century."--Foreign Affairs, 'Significant Books of the Last 75 Years'Foreword1. The war with Spain Mr. Hippisley & the open doorAmerica & the Orient World War I World War II Diplomacy in the modern world 2. The sources of Soviet conductAmerica & the Russian future