Do Americans care what foreigners think about the United States? This book makes the case that they should. In these pages, Jorge Castaneda writes from his unique vantage point as a former Foreign Minister of Mexico who has lived, studied, and worked in America. He offers an impressionistic, analytical, and intuitive review of his experience in the country over the last half-century, and shows how foreigners can provide perspective on the United States' true nature. Castaneda brings a different viewpoint to issues ranging from purported American exceptionalism, uniformity, race and religion, culture, immigration, and the death penalty. Visitors and analysts, from Dickens to Naipaul, have generally asked the right questions and described America's most salient features and mysteries. But, they have not always followed through with answers and explanations. Castaneda draws from his work with American civil society and government authorities to provide both insight and context. Americans have long seen their country as "exceptional," standing outside of history, but by comparing its contemporary politics and culture with those of other countries, Castaneda shows how increasing nationalism and nostalgia are actually making the US more like other countries. Castaneda admits that most Americans have never cared much about what a foreigner thinks about their country, but the dynamic is shifting. The outside world means more to the US than ever before, and Americans should care about what foreigners think since they are now so sensitive to what foreigners do. Since Trump's election in 2016, American politics increasingly resemble those of Europe, Latin America, and parts of Asia, such that pining for a lost and glorious past is as American as it is British, Mexican, Chinese, or Italian. Now, the questions that serious, knowledgeable, and sympathetic foreigners address to Americans may be the ones Americans ask--or should ask--for themselves.

About the Author
Jorge G. Castaneda was Foreign Minister of Mexico from 2000 to 2003. In 1997, he was appointed Global Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Latin American Studies at New York University. He has been a Member of the Board of Human Rights Watch since 2003. In April 2008, Castaneda was elected Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and International Member of the American Philosophical Society. He has more than 15 books published in the United States and elsewhere, including Companero: The Life and Death of Che Guevara.

Reviews
Castaneda has made an important contribution to the difficult genre of analyzing the United States from an outsider's perspective. Such work is rather challenging given the size of the country and the complexity of issues it faces. * Krystof Kozak, Charles University, H-Net Reviews *
Presents a foreigner's assessment of the nearexistentialist struggle currently gripping American society and how it might be alleviated, examining whether consumer society has stamped a sameness on Americans and whether the perennial claim of American exceptionalism can still be justified. * Journal of Economic Literature (Volume 59, no. 1) *



Book Information
ISBN 9780190224493
Author Jorge G. Castaneda
Format Hardback
Page Count 320
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 612g
Dimensions(mm) 165mm * 239mm * 31mm