International Education Matters

A Forum for Issues Pertaining to
Intensive English Programs

Noreen Baker
University of Florida

Summary of “Limits of American Power” (Joseph S. Nye, Jr., Political Science Quarterly, Winter 2002-2003)

Joseph S. Nye Jr. dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, discusses American supremacy and how long it will last. The United States has unprecedented military power, but the sword alone won't ensure American preponderance in the long term, he argues. "If the United States wants to remain strong, Americans need to pay attention to our soft power" -- our ability to attract others to our way of life and get them to want what we want, Mr. Nye argues. "Soft power arises in large part from our values," he writes.

"The values of democracy, personal freedom, upward mobility, and openness that are often expressed in American popular culture, higher education, and foreign policy enhance America's soft power," Mr. Nye writes, because they are values that others admire and want to imitate. However, imperious American foreign policies, arrogance, and indifference to the opinions of people in other countries could undermine that power and call forth a "countervailing coalition that will eventually limit American power," he warns.

How long "Pax Americana" will last "will depend on how the United States behaves," Mr. Nye writes. It is likely to last well into this century if our soft power remains robust and we use our power wisely to promote cooperation with other countries, he concludes.

The article may be downloaded from the journal's Web site at http://www.psqonline.org

Used with permission of the author.

This file was updated on November 8, 2003