International Misrecognition: The Politics of Humour and National Identity in Israel’s Public Diplomacy
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Standard
International Misrecognition : The Politics of Humour and National Identity in Israel’s Public Diplomacy. / Adler-Nissen, Rebecca; Tsinovoi, Alexei.
In: European Journal of International Relations, Vol. 25, No. 1, 2019, p. 3–29.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Harvard
APA
Vancouver
Author
Bibtex
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
T1 - International Misrecognition
T2 - The Politics of Humour and National Identity in Israel’s Public Diplomacy
AU - Adler-Nissen, Rebecca
AU - Tsinovoi, Alexei
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Recognition, or the lack of it, is a central concern in International Relations. However, how states cope with international misrecognition has so far not been thoroughly explored in International Relations scholarship. To address this, the article presents a theoretical framework for understanding international misrecognition by drawing on discursive and psychoanalytical theories of collective identity formation and humour studies. The article conceptualises international misrecognition as a gap between the dominant narrative of a national Self and the way in which this national Self is reflected in the ‘mirror’ of the international Other. We argue that humour offers an important way of coping with misrecognition by ridiculing and thereby downplaying international criticism. The significance for international relations is illustrated through an analysis of the public diplomacy campaign ‘Presenting Israel’, which, through parodying video clips, mobilised ordinary Israeli citizens to engage in peer-to-peer public diplomacy to explain Israel when travelling abroad. Public diplomacy campaigns are commonly seen by scholars and practitioners as attempts to improve the nation’s image and smoothen or normalise international Self–Other relations. However, after analysing the discursive and visual components of the campaign — which parodied how European media portrayed Israel as primitive, violent and exotic — this article observes that in the context of international misrecognition, such coping attempts can actually contribute to further international estrangement.
AB - Recognition, or the lack of it, is a central concern in International Relations. However, how states cope with international misrecognition has so far not been thoroughly explored in International Relations scholarship. To address this, the article presents a theoretical framework for understanding international misrecognition by drawing on discursive and psychoanalytical theories of collective identity formation and humour studies. The article conceptualises international misrecognition as a gap between the dominant narrative of a national Self and the way in which this national Self is reflected in the ‘mirror’ of the international Other. We argue that humour offers an important way of coping with misrecognition by ridiculing and thereby downplaying international criticism. The significance for international relations is illustrated through an analysis of the public diplomacy campaign ‘Presenting Israel’, which, through parodying video clips, mobilised ordinary Israeli citizens to engage in peer-to-peer public diplomacy to explain Israel when travelling abroad. Public diplomacy campaigns are commonly seen by scholars and practitioners as attempts to improve the nation’s image and smoothen or normalise international Self–Other relations. However, after analysing the discursive and visual components of the campaign — which parodied how European media portrayed Israel as primitive, violent and exotic — this article observes that in the context of international misrecognition, such coping attempts can actually contribute to further international estrangement.
KW - Faculty of Social Sciences
KW - Humor
KW - Public Diplomacy
KW - Israel
KW - National identitet
KW - Diplomati
KW - International politik
KW - Misrecognition
KW - Misrecognition
KW - Public Diplomacy
KW - Nation Branding
KW - Israel
KW - Diplomacy
KW - National Identity
KW - International Relations
KW - international relations theories
KW - Lacan
U2 - 10.1177/1354066117745365
DO - 10.1177/1354066117745365
M3 - Journal article
VL - 25
SP - 3
EP - 29
JO - European Journal of International Relations
JF - European Journal of International Relations
SN - 1354-0661
IS - 1
ER -
ID: 187016627