Wednesday 18 January, 17.15
Wharton Room, All Souls College, Oxford, OX1 4AL
Declinism in Postwar Britain and the United States
Dr Robert Ralston, University of Birmingham
Both the United States and the United Kingdom have, historically, experienced bouts of “declinism,” or concern over the nation’s international standing. In this paper, I examine declinist narratives in both countries, detailing both their frequency and their interconnections. I argue that declinism impacts not only the domestic and foreign policies of each country independently, but also the nature of the transatlantic relationship more broadly. In particular, I highlight how declinism can unite like-minded leaders on both sides of the Atlantic, whose declinist narratives are tied to ideological projects and whose visions of renewal share common traits. Using the case of Thatcher and Reagan, I highlight how both used declinism as a domestic political narrative for renewal, how they learned from each other, and how their declinism at home shaped the transatlantic relationship.
Robert Ralston is a Lecturer in the Department of Political Science and International Studies (POLSIS) at the University of Birmingham and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. He was previously a Grand Strategy, Security, and Statecraft Fellow jointly appointed at the International Security Program, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School and the Security Studies Program, MIT. He received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Minnesota in 2020.
Seminars at 17.15, Wharton Room, All Souls College, Oxford, OX1 4AL.
All are welcome, no need to book.
