A Life in the American Century

Nye is best known for his theory of “soft power,” which explains why a country’s ideas, institutions, and habits of cooperation can be as important in shaping the behavior of other states as the use of “hard power,” such as military force, threats, and sanctions. In this deft memoir, Nye shows how his experiences in academia and policymaking illuminate the inner workings of American power—both hard and soft. In a chapter on the years he spent crafting nonproliferation policy in the Carter administration, Nye recalls bureaucratic battles, complex intergovernmental consultations, and the struggle to forge a coherent strategy. Another chapter focuses on Nye’s work at the Pentagon during the Clinton administration, in which he played a leading role in the renegotiation of alliance relations with Japan. In these and numerous other accounts of policy debates and diplomatic encounters, Nye offers reflections on the building blocks of effective foreign policy: establishing one’s credibility, looking for policy openings, building relationships, focusing on problem solving, and defining an enduring strategy. Ultimately, he argues that the long era of the United States’ global influence is threatened less by the rise of powerful rivals than by domestic upheaval and division and the return of isolationism.