Publication Date

2016-04-21

Availability

Embargoed

Embargo Period

2018-04-21

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PHD)

Department

International Studies (Arts and Sciences)

Date of Defense

2016-03-30

First Committee Member

Joaquín Roy

Second Committee Member

Eugene Clasby

Third Committee Member

Ambler Moss

Fourth Committee Member

Joseph McKinney

Abstract

The increasingly complex challenges faced by the Western world since the beginning of the twenty-first century have fostered scholarship on culture and values as important explanatory factors of international relations. Such theoretical shift offers the opportunity to develop new avenues of research. Transatlantic relations are one of them. On the one hand, great emphasis has been placed on security issues in the wake of World War II through NATO and on economic issues in the wake of the world financial crisis through TTIP. On the other hand, although the Euro-American relationship has been characterized by strong differences, it nevertheless shares common historical/cultural roots that can be an asset to strengthen its bonds in times of deep and dramatic changes. What then should be the role of culture and values in transatlantic relations? This dissertation examines transatlantic relations in the early twenty-first century from the standpoint of the cultural and historical legacies of Europe and the United States and how these are connected to two major cultural shifts occurring simultaneously and with a significant impact on Western identity and values, namely, the shifting religious landscape in Europe and the United States and the European refugee crisis. These two cultural shifts represent an opportunity for Europe and the United States to strengthen their cultural bonds, to develop a renewed perspective on Western identity and values and to redefine the Euro-American leadership in times when no other major power or region in the world is prepared or willing to lead.

Keywords

Culture; transatlantic relations; integration; Western values; religion; refugee crisis

Download

Available for download on Saturday, April 21, 2018

Share

COinS