Silences and hierarchies in European Union Public Diplomacy

Abstract This article analyzes the effects of European Union Public Diplomacy (EUPD) discourses, drawing on poststructuralist approaches, which emphasize the productive dimension of discourse. We argue that EUPD helps reproduce a hierarchized identity of the EU, which authorizes particular courses o...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Paula Orrico Sandrin, Andrea Ribeiro Hoffmann
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais 2018-11-01
Series:Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional
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Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-73292018000100210&lng=en&tlng=en
Description
Summary:Abstract This article analyzes the effects of European Union Public Diplomacy (EUPD) discourses, drawing on poststructuralist approaches, which emphasize the productive dimension of discourse. We argue that EUPD helps reproduce a hierarchized identity of the EU, which authorizes particular courses of action while limiting others. Through an analysis of EUPD documents, we identify three descriptors - “EU as a zone of peace, prosperity and democracy”; “United in Diversity”; and “EU as a model” – which, together, form a meaningful narrative about EU’s identity, infused with moral superiority, and constitute a dominant discourse with political effects internally and externally.
ISSN:1983-3121