Kissinger’s name has been synonymous with American foreign policy for over 50 years. He believed in the “American global mission” which involved dominating (perceived) enemies from within and across the globe. Both Christopher Hitchens and Seymour Hersh condemned him as “unhinged” and insisted he should have been tried as a “war criminal”. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973 in very controversial circumstances. He has been revered and reviled in equal measure as the quintessential Machiavellian statesman.
- Ferguson, Niall, 2015 (Vol 1) 2028 (Vol 2) Kissinger, Volumes 1 and 2, ISBN 1594206538
- Isaacson, Walter, 2005, Kissinger, Simon and Schuster, ISBN 9780743286
- Gewen, Barry, 2020, The Inevitability of Tragedy, Henry Kissinger and His World, Norton, ISBN 1324004053
- Schwartz, Thomas. A, Henry Kissinger and American Power, Hill and Wang, ISBN 0809095378
- Dallek, Robert, 2007, Nixon and Kissinger, Partners in Power, Harper Perennial, ISBN 0060722312
- Early life, army service and Harvard University 1923-1961
- Political consultancy in the 1960s, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon
- Election of Nixon 1968 and political partnership with Nixon whom Kissinger regarded as “unfit for the Presidency”, Vietnam War, Peace negotiations, bombing of Cambodia, Watergate, 1968-1974
- Coup against Allende in Chile 1973 and the American global perspective
- Loathing and adulation, why are there so many and varied opinions about the work of Kissinger and his legacy into the 21st century?
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
- Gain an understanding of the wide variety of critical assessments of Kissinger, his life, his foreign policy and his legacy over the last 50-60 years
- Appreciate the difficulty of clearly defining complex historical/political concepts eg. “statesmanship”, “realpolitik”, “global hegemony’, “war crime, “diplomacy” in the 20th and 21st centuries
