The Wilsonian Century: U.S. Foreign Policy since 1900 (Hardcover)

by Frank Ninkovich (Author) "The distinguishing feature of modern times is that they are radically different from the past..." (more)
Key Phrases: normal internationalism, neutral rights, atomic diplomacy, United States, State Department, Far East (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
In his persuasive new book, Harvard historian Ninkovich, the author of Modernity and Power (Univ. of Chicago, 1994) and other influential writings on foreign policy, challenges the accepted interpretations of American diplomatic policy in the 20th century as exemplified chiefly by George F. Kennan and William Appleman Williams. He proclaims a Wilsonian theory of internationalism as an alternative approach to the "realist" and "objectivist" models used to explain the United States' actions and decisions. Also discussed is the shift in policy from a "normal" to a "crisis" internationalism that took place from the years leading up to World War I to the post-Cold War period. By thoroughly documenting the literature of foreign relations, Ninkovich is carrying on an important analytical tradition. This book is worthy of sharing shelf space with Kennan, Williams, and other major foreign policy theorists. Highly recommended for academic libraries.AThomas A. Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, PA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description
For most of this century, American foreign policy was guided by a set of assumptions that were formulated during World War I by President Woodrow Wilson. In this incisive reexamination, Frank Ninkovich argues that the Wilsonian outlook, far from being a crusading, idealistic doctrine, was reactive, practical, and grounded in fear. Wilson and his successors believed it absolutely essential to guard against world war or global domination, with the underlying aim of safeguarding and nurturing political harmony and commercial cooperation among the great powers. As the world entered a period of unprecedented turbulence, Wilsonianism became a "crisis internationalism" dedicated to preserving the benign vision of "normal internationalism" with which the United States entered the twentieth century.

In the process of describing Wilson's legacy, Ninkovich reinterprets most of the twentieth century's main foreign policy developments. He views the 1920s, for example, not as an isolationist period but as a reversion to Taft's Dollar Diplomacy. The Cold War, with its faraway military interventions, illustrates Wilsonian America's preoccupation with achieving a cohesive world opinion and its abandonment of traditional, regional conceptions of national interest.

The Wilsonian Century offers a striking alternative to traditional interest-based interpretations of U.S. foreign policy. In revising the usual view of Wilson's contribution, Ninkovich shows the extraordinary degree to which Wilsonian ideas guided American policy through a century of conflict and tension.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 330 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226586480
• ISBN-13: 978-0226586489
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
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• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,331,363 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)