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Nostalgic Virility as a Cause of WarHow Leaders of Great Powers Cope with Status Decline |
eBook Available
New ways of thinking about power politics and military intervention in an unstable world.
Why do great powers go to war? Why are non-violent, diplomatic options not prioritized? Nostalgic Virility as a Cause of War argues that world leaders react to status decline by going to war, guided by a nostalgic, virile understanding of what it means to be powerful. This nostalgic virility - a system of subjective beliefs about power, bravery, strength, morality, and health - acts as a filter through which leaders articulate glorified interpretations of history and assess their power and their country’s status on the international stage.
In this rigorous study of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Matthieu Grandpierron tests the theory of nostalgic virility against the two more common theoretical frameworks of realism and the diversionary theory of war. Consulting thousands of newly declassified government documents at the highest levels of decision making, Grandpierron examines three specific cases - the early years of the Indochina War (1945-47), the British reconquest of the Falklands in 1982, and the US invasion of Grenada in 1983 - convincingly contending that status-seeking behaviour and nostalgic virility are more relevant in explaining why a leader chooses war and conflict over non-violent, diplomatic options than the dominant frameworks.
Looking to the recent past, Nostalgic Virility as a Cause of War considers how this new model can be applied to current conflicts - from the Russian war in Ukraine to Chinese actions in the South China Sea - and provides surprising ways of thinking about the relationship between power, decision makers, and causes of war.
In this rigorous study of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Matthieu Grandpierron tests the theory of nostalgic virility against the two more common theoretical frameworks of realism and the diversionary theory of war. Consulting thousands of newly declassified government documents at the highest levels of decision making, Grandpierron examines three specific cases - the early years of the Indochina War (1945-47), the British reconquest of the Falklands in 1982, and the US invasion of Grenada in 1983 - convincingly contending that status-seeking behaviour and nostalgic virility are more relevant in explaining why a leader chooses war and conflict over non-violent, diplomatic options than the dominant frameworks.
Looking to the recent past, Nostalgic Virility as a Cause of War considers how this new model can be applied to current conflicts - from the Russian war in Ukraine to Chinese actions in the South China Sea - and provides surprising ways of thinking about the relationship between power, decision makers, and causes of war.
Details
Part of the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government Studies in Leadership, Public Policy, and Governance (number 16 in series)
288 Pages, 6 x 9
24 tables, 1 photo
ISBN 9780228020363
March 2024
Formats: Cloth, Paperback, eBook
“Nostalgic Virility As a Cause of War is a fantastic contribution to scholarship on the causes of war and on the dynamics of great power politics. The author develops a genuinely novel theoretical account of why powerful states go to war on their periphery and demonstrates, in persuasive detail, that status and identity concerns associated with a lost sense of virility are more important for explaining observed events than alternatives based on strategic interests and domestic politics.” David McCourt, University of California-Davis
Matthieu Grandpierron is associate professor of international relations and political science at the Catholic University of Vendée.
Tables and Figure vii
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 3
1 Status-Seeking and Nostalgic Virility: Towards a Novel Theoretical Framework for Understanding the Causes of War 16
2 Methodology and Research Design 38
3 France in Pursuit of Past Glory in Indochina, 1945-47 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 53
4 France in Pursuit of Past Glory in Indochina, 1945-47 (II): Testing Status-Seeking and Nostalgic Virility Frameworks 67
5 Britain Confronted in the Falklands Crisis, 1982 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 93
6 Britain Confronted in the Falklands Crisis, 1982 (II): Testing Status and Nostalgic Virility 113
7 The US Invasion of Grenada, 1983 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 146
8 The US Invasion of Grenada, 1983 (II): Testing the Status and Nostalgic Virility Framework 165
9 Conclusions and Implications for Studying the Causes of War, China and Russia 194
Notes 213
Bibliography 247
Index 265
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 3
1 Status-Seeking and Nostalgic Virility: Towards a Novel Theoretical Framework for Understanding the Causes of War 16
2 Methodology and Research Design 38
3 France in Pursuit of Past Glory in Indochina, 1945-47 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 53
4 France in Pursuit of Past Glory in Indochina, 1945-47 (II): Testing Status-Seeking and Nostalgic Virility Frameworks 67
5 Britain Confronted in the Falklands Crisis, 1982 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 93
6 Britain Confronted in the Falklands Crisis, 1982 (II): Testing Status and Nostalgic Virility 113
7 The US Invasion of Grenada, 1983 (I): Testing Mainstream Theories 146
8 The US Invasion of Grenada, 1983 (II): Testing the Status and Nostalgic Virility Framework 165
9 Conclusions and Implications for Studying the Causes of War, China and Russia 194
Notes 213
Bibliography 247
Index 265
9780228017547
$140.00 CAD
Cloth
