Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment
This paper proposes to understand diplomacy as a form of impression management. Drawing on Erving Goffman’s dramaturgy, I show how diplomats seek to repair sudden cracks in the fragile international order. I analyse Greenland’s and the Faroes’ puzzling ability to continue controversial seal and whal...
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ftcopenhagenunip:oai:pure.atira.dk:publications/7f904631-78b4-4447-8eef-d22049ac72f2 2023-05-15T16:11:14+02:00 Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment Adler-Nissen, Rebecca 2012 https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/diplomacy-as-impression-management-strategic-facework-and-postcolonial-embarrassment(7f904631-78b4-4447-8eef-d22049ac72f2).html http://cepsi-cipss.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Working_Paper_RadlerNissen1.pdf eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess Adler-Nissen , R 2012 ' Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment ' pp. 1-39 . < http://cepsi-cipss.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Working_Paper_RadlerNissen1.pdf > workingPaper 2012 ftcopenhagenunip 2021-09-23T17:14:06Z This paper proposes to understand diplomacy as a form of impression management. Drawing on Erving Goffman’s dramaturgy, I show how diplomats seek to repair sudden cracks in the fragile international order. I analyse Greenland’s and the Faroes’ puzzling ability to continue controversial seal and whale hunting despite massive international regulation and criticism. In diplomatic negotiations, the two former Danish colonies use post-colonial embarrassment and irony to push Denmark into negotiating an exemption to the EU’s ban on seal products in 2009 and defend pilot whale hunting in the Faroes. Analysing diplomacy as impression management implies, first, that diplomacy cannot be seen as a one-to-one reflection of the relative capabilities or identities of the involved states. Rather, diplomacy should be understood as a social world of its own, abiding to its own rules, norms and codes of conduct. Its inhabitants may represent national interests but they also defend particular views of cosmos and they are saving face. Second, a focus on face-work and social order may help explain both the “conformist” bias of diplomacy and the way it may enable contestation of hierarchies. Report Faroes University of Copenhagen: Research |
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University of Copenhagen: Research |
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This paper proposes to understand diplomacy as a form of impression management. Drawing on Erving Goffman’s dramaturgy, I show how diplomats seek to repair sudden cracks in the fragile international order. I analyse Greenland’s and the Faroes’ puzzling ability to continue controversial seal and whale hunting despite massive international regulation and criticism. In diplomatic negotiations, the two former Danish colonies use post-colonial embarrassment and irony to push Denmark into negotiating an exemption to the EU’s ban on seal products in 2009 and defend pilot whale hunting in the Faroes. Analysing diplomacy as impression management implies, first, that diplomacy cannot be seen as a one-to-one reflection of the relative capabilities or identities of the involved states. Rather, diplomacy should be understood as a social world of its own, abiding to its own rules, norms and codes of conduct. Its inhabitants may represent national interests but they also defend particular views of cosmos and they are saving face. Second, a focus on face-work and social order may help explain both the “conformist” bias of diplomacy and the way it may enable contestation of hierarchies. |
format |
Report |
author |
Adler-Nissen, Rebecca |
spellingShingle |
Adler-Nissen, Rebecca Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
author_facet |
Adler-Nissen, Rebecca |
author_sort |
Adler-Nissen, Rebecca |
title |
Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
title_short |
Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
title_full |
Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
title_fullStr |
Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
title_full_unstemmed |
Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment |
title_sort |
diplomacy as impression management: strategic face-work and post-colonial embarrassment |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/diplomacy-as-impression-management-strategic-facework-and-postcolonial-embarrassment(7f904631-78b4-4447-8eef-d22049ac72f2).html http://cepsi-cipss.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Working_Paper_RadlerNissen1.pdf |
genre |
Faroes |
genre_facet |
Faroes |
op_source |
Adler-Nissen , R 2012 ' Diplomacy as Impression Management: Strategic Face-Work and Post-Colonial Embarrassment ' pp. 1-39 . < http://cepsi-cipss.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Working_Paper_RadlerNissen1.pdf > |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess |
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1765996375460282368 |