Thomas A. Schwartz Henry Kissinger and American Power: A Political Biography
| DOI | 10.1177/00207020211019342 |
| Published date | 01 June 2021 |
| Date | 01 June 2021 |
| Author | Jack Cunningham |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
network environments (Ira Wagman and Potter, respectively); argue for a greater
commitment to generative partnerships with non-state actors, be they gallery directors,
curators, or artists (Smith); revisit the role of gift exchange in opening up “spaces of
equivalence in asymmetrical power relations”(225) to foster meaningful people-to-
people and state-to-state dialogue (Mark Kristmanson); and underline the need to
develop proficiency in the realms of intercultural relations and international law when
partaking in the exhibition of disputed cultural artifacts (Bernard Duhaime and Camille
Labadie).
The case studies featured may help map the scope of practices that fall under the
public diplomacy umbrella, but they also serve to introduce the range of actors called
upon to make and project Canada’s image abroad. On this topic, Copeland offers an
important reminder when he writes that the “continuing evolution away from state-
centricity,”which is a function of today’sdynam ic world of networked non-state actors,
“requires that diplomacy become more public, inclusive, and participatory”(37). Yet
Canada’sPublic Diplomacy offers few insights on how best to engage the individuals,
groups, and organizations that make up domestic civil society. Listening to indigenous
voices and incorporating the perspectives of diaspora communities, for instance, are
key to holding Canada to account as it navigates an increasingly complex diplomatic
landscape amid a climate crisis bound to negatively impact human rights and dem-
ocratic governance. As Cull explains, the “most credible partners in global conver-
sations are unlikely to be nation-states, and Ottawa would do well to look to empower ”
such non-state actors (10). This timely book is thus also an invitation to reflect on the
urgent need to take concrete steps in that direction.
Thomas A. Schwartz
Henry Kissinger and American Power: A Political Biography
New York: Hill and Wang, 2020. 549 pp., $47.50 (cloth)
ISBN: 978-080909-537-7
Reviewed by: Jack Cunningham (stewartjohncunningham@hotmail.com), University of
Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Thomas Schwartz’s study of Henry Kissinger is neither the first nor the last word on its
controversial subject. Kissinger was the object of biographical praise and derision even
in office and continues to be the most revered and reviled Secretary of State in recent
American history, almost forty-five years after leaving office. Even during his tenure at
the State Department, he was the subject of a long and admiring biography by Bernard
and Marvin Kalb, and after leaving office, penned three massive volumes of memoirs
that repay reading, even if they must be used with care. In retirement, he was visited by
foreign policy neophytes, such as Dan Quayle, Sarah Palin, and even the egregious
Donald Trump, eager to appear to imbibe geopolitical wisdom from the sage of Park
Avenue. Yet there have been fervid critics too. The 1983 volume by Seymour Hersh,
346 International Journal 76(2)
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