Book Review

During George Bush's presidency the Cold War drew to a close and his administration triumphed in the Gulf War. Some viewed these events as a harbinger of a new world order. Basking in the success of the Gulf War, Bush's approval ratings soared, and prominent Democrats reconsidered challenging him in 1992. Foreign policy themes might have seemed a natural emphasis in campaign rhetoric. Yet, on the eve of the election, Bush abandoned efforts to rally the public with such appeals.

This article identifies primary metaphorical themes employed by Bush to define foreign policy reality. Bush's rhetoric was fundamentally ordered by the orientational metaphor of war. Other themes reinforced central premises of the war metaphor and reflected enduring premises of American exceptional ism. However, critical constraints blunted Bush's rhetorical intentions, and perhaps nullified constraints presidents traditionally have harnessed to define rhetorical situations to fit a preferred world view.

A disjuncture between rhetorical expectations and intentions beset the administration as the 1992 election approached. The electorate turned an anxious gaze to domestic politics and the condition of the economy. Furthermore, the war metaphor met a public demonstrably leery of U.S. meddling in the internal politics of other countries. Preference for the war metaphor, finally, represented a significant challenge to the political identity of Bush and the Republican Party.     

Book Review

Book reviews in this article:
Louis Kriesberg, Terrell A. Northrup, and Stuart J. Thorson (editors). Intractable Conflicts and Their Transformation .
Janice Gross Stein (editor). Getting to the Table: The Processes of International Prenegotiation .
Frances Maumer-Markhof (editor). Processes of International Negotiations     

Book Review

Radical myths and superpower relations in the 1980s

A review of Mark Kaldor, Gerard Holden, and Richard Falk (eds), The New Detente: Rethinking East‐West Relations, Verso, London, 1989.

Paul Taylor and A.J.R. Groom, Global Issues in the United Nations Framework, Basingstoke, Hampshire, The MacMillan Press Ltd., 1989.

Roger A. Coate, Unilateralism, Ideology, and US Foreign Policy: The United States in and out of UNESCO, Lynne Reinner Publishers, London, 1988.

Bary Buzan, Morten Kelstnip, Pierre Lemaitre, Elzbieta Tromer, and Ole Weaver, The European Security Order Recast: Scenarios for the Post‐Cold War Era, Pinter Publishers, London & New York, 1990, pp.x. 282, £8.95 pbk, £30 hbk.     

Book Review

Asia Europe Journal -     

Book Review

Asia Europe Journal -     

Book Review

Adams, William C., Editor, Television Coverage of the Middle East. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex Publishing Corporation, 1981, 167 pages.     

Book Review

Asia Europe Journal -     

Book Review

Theorists have argued that discussion and disagreement are essential components of sound public opinion, and indeed that both are necessary for effective democracy. But their putative benefits have not been well tested. Consequently, this article examines whether disagreement in political conversation contributes to opinion quality--specifically, whether it expands one's understanding of others' perspectives. Data are drawn from a survey of the American public ( N = 1,684) conducted in February and March 2000. Open-ended survey measures of "argument repertoire"--reasons people can give in support of their own opinions, as well as reasons they can offer to support opposing points of view--are examined in light of numerous explanatory variables, including the frequency of political conversation and exposure to disagreement. Results confirm the hypothesis that exposure to disagreement does indeed contribute to people's ability to generate reasons, and in particular reasons why others might disagree with their own views.     

Book Review

Asia Europe Journal -