Brief reflections on the anglo-saxon and french cultural approaches of the international relations field : from cultural diplomacy to soft power practices (original) (raw)

Cultural diplomacy and soft power have become increasingly important to foreign policy when it comes to influencing people, countries and continents. While technological advances have made communication more agile and instantaneous, the international scenario has also become more competitive. Therefore, the cultural factor emerges as a unique element of differentiation between states that want to play an active role among other countries. This essay examines the culture approach of the French tradition of international relations balanced with the concepts of Joseph Nye in order to understand how countries are using this tool in their foreign policy. Over the years, an enormous amount of research has been done on the cultural field, but only recent studies have deeply explored the use of cultural diplomacy and soft power strategies. Thus, this study offers a different analysis of cultural foreign policy from historical and global perspectives.