New Wine and Old Bottles: International Politics and Ethical Discourse

Jean Bethke Elshtain challenges a powerful strand in western political thinking that separates the political and ethical realms. This is manifest above all in the claim that although the rule of justice might pertain between citizens, force is the ultimate arbiter between states and would-be states. But this claim fails to capture the many complex ways that political bodies deal with one another through norms and rules and not simply by force. Elshtain captures this alternative dimension by examining two dominant currents in international politics: sovereignty and nationalism. She shows the ways in which the historic understanding of sovereignty was deeply dependent on theological concepts, and demonstrates that much of contemporary life is marked by the mapping of concepts of sovereignty onto our understanding, not just of states but of persons. Over the years, many experts predicted confidently that the power of nationalism would abate as "rationalism" and "internationalism" spread. Elshtain explains why this prediction was flawed and accounts for the emergence of today's "new nationalism," the political passion of our time. She asks, Knowing the terrible cost of nationalistic excess, is there a defensible version of national identity and loyalty? With the late Sir Isaiah Berlin, Elshtain argues "yes." In her provocative epilogue, Elshtain asks whether there is room for forgiveness in international politics, and concludes on the speculative and hopeful note that ways might be found to break repetitive cycles of vengeance.