The Abandonment of the West: The History of an Idea in American Foreign Policy

by Michael Kimmage

Overview

This definitive portrait of American diplomacy reveals how the concept of the West drove twentieth-century foreign policy, how it fell from favor, and why it is worth saving.


Throughout the twentieth century, many Americans saw themselves as part of Western civilization, and Western ideals of liberty and self-government guided American diplomacy. But today, other ideas fill this role: on one side, a technocratic "liberal international order," and on the other, the illiberal nationalism of "America First."


In The Abandonment of the West, historian Michael Kimmage shows how the West became the dominant idea in US foreign policy in the first half of the twentieth century — and how that consensus has unraveled. We must revive the West, he argues, to counter authoritarian challenges from Russia and China. This is an urgent portrait of modern America's complicated origins, its emergence as a superpower, and the crossroads at which it now stands.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780465055906
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	04/21/2020
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	622,767
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Michael Kimmage is a professor of history at the Catholic University of America, specializing in the history of the United States, Europe, and Russia. A member of the secretary's policy planning staff at the US Department of State from 2014 to 2016 and the author of two books, he lives with his wife and two daughters in Washington, DC.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part I The Rise of the West

Chapter 1 The Columbian Republic, 1893-1919 29

Chapter 2 The Case for the West, 1919-1945 69

Chapter 3 The Rise of the "West, 1945-1963 111

Part II The Abandonment of the West

Chapter 4 Questions, 1963-1979 157

Chapter 5 The Suicide of the West? 1963-1992 201

Chapter 6 The Post-Columbian Republic, 1992-2016 249

Conclusion 299

Acknowledgments 331

Permissions 335

Notes 337

Index 355

Editorial Reviews

02/10/2020

The once influential notion of the United States as the champion of Western civilization has lapsed, leaving Euro-American relations rudderless, according to this ruminative history. Kimmage (In History’s Grip), a history professor at Catholic University of America and former State Department planner, traces the doctrine that Europe and America belonged to a unified Western culture of liberty, law, and democracy to 20th-century academics and foreign-policy intellectuals; this ideology, he notes, birthed Western Civilization college courses and justified America’s intervention in Europe’s battle against Nazi Germany and Cold War confrontation with communism. It was undermined, he argues, by the Left’s critique of Western racism and imperialism, the Right’s critique of Western liberalism’s decadence and godlessness, and the Third World’s resentment of Western colonialism. Since 1989, Kimmage notes, presidents have dropped talk of defending Western civilization, and, more recently, President Trump has voiced a populist contempt for the whole project of Euro-American cooperation. Kimmage’s erudite and far-ranging discussion of debates over Western-ness highlights the perspectives of critics like James Baldwin, W.E.B. DuBois, and Edward Said, but his weak argument for reviving a Euro-American alliance relies on vague concerns about challenges from Russia and China. Contrary to the author’s intentions, some readers will leave this tepid study feeling that the rhetoric of Western solidarity is no longer relevant. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"The Abandonment of the West meticulously chronicles a tragic phenomenon as only an observer of his caliber can. A fascinating wakeup call and a call for action for America to revive the beautiful vision we invented."—John Kerry, United States Secretary of State, 2013 to 2017


"Michael Kimmage has written a deeply thoughtful, sensitive book that will confound the expectations of readers expecting a triumphalist defense of 'the West.' On the contrary, Kimmage explores the many contradictions underpinning the historical evolution of the very concept of the West, particularly for the 'post-Columbian Republic' that the United States has become. It is a book that rewards careful reading and reflection, one that I would recommend for students, scholars, and foreign policy advisers everywhere."—Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO, New America


"This is an intelligent, convincing, and highly readable account of one of the biggest ideas in American foreign policy: The West. With vivid examples, Kimmage shows how America's cultural affinity with a mythical 'Western civilization' first rose to the center of U.S. foreign policy in the late nineteenth century and why it triumphed during the Cold War. Since then, the idea of a mythical West has almost totally collapsed. Kimmage reveals why that is and how foreign policy leaders today can recuperate a new uniting idea to guide the United States in the years to come."—Caroline Winterer, William Robertson Coe Professor in History and American Studies, Stanford University


"World War I, World War II, and the Cold War were all wars of East against West, but in the post-Cold War period, the idea of the West has lost its role within American foreign policy. It is the cultural changes within the American society rather than any geopolitical shifts that explain this change, argues Michael Kimmage, in his elegantly written and thoroughly researched new book."—Ivan Krastev, author of After Europe


"In this disturbing and important book, a first rate intellectual historian, who has also served in government, reflects on the decline of the idea that once gave coherence to American foreign policy: the West. Michael Kimmage's range of learning and contemporary insight is remarkable, and his exploration of how the West fell victim, in part, to its own success is not a counsel of despair but rather a call to considered action."—Eliot A. Cohen, Dean, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies

"To know where we stand, we must understand where we come from. In The Abandonment of the West, Michael Kimmage takes readers on a revealing journey through the history and influence of the idea of 'the West' on U.S. foreign policy. This is an important book for all those who want to better understand the complex and multifaceted relationship between the U.S. and Europe. Kimmage's work makes it clear what is at stake for us as Europeans when U.S. foreign policy abandons its relationship with the idea of the West. This is a wake-up call to Europe to promote the West-and not to give up its ideals."—SigmarGabriel, former German Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister for ForeignAffairs


"This is an exceedingly important book and certainly one that would benefit all American readers who wonder how we arrived at our current status in an increasingly interconnected world."—Library Journal

From the Publisher

02/14/2020

The West as an idea is an intriguing concept, and one that has generated much literature over the years. Kimmage's (history, Catholic Univ. of America; The Conservative Turn) latest book stands apart because of its historical and philosophical treatment of what Western culture means to contemporary Americans. Going back to the late 19th century, Kimmage traces the various theories of international relations, beginning with Woodrow Wilson's internationalism, and examines the evolution of America's engagement with the rest of the world during the course of the 20th century. Kimmage points out that, in our present century, the traditional view of Western dominance is now being challenged by the rise of China and Russia, and that we should reconsider the mindset that Western culture is superior to others. VERDICT This is an exceedingly important book and certainly one that would benefit all American readers who wonder how we arrived at our current status in an increasingly interconnected world. Highly recommended for all collections.—Ed Goedeken, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames

Library Journal

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