The Courtiers of Civilization: A Study of Diplomacy.

• Author: Erpul, Onur
• Position: Book review

By Sasson Sofer

State University of New York Press, 2013, 138 pages, $70, ISBN 9781438448930.

Reviewed by Onur Erpul, Florida International University

At best an honorable spy, at worst an insipid appeaser, and presumed by some to be a relic of the past, professional diplomats are often the target of unflattering characterizations. Sasson Sofer seeks to disabuse readers of such notions by presenting a theoretically-informed discussion about the history of diplomacy and the underappreciated functions of its practitioners in international politics. The author is a seasoned scholar of diplomacy: an emeritus professor of International Relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with an extensive list of publications on the history and practice of diplomacy. The Courtiers of Civilization is the culmination of a career immersed in International Relations Theory, diplomacy, and decision-making, as evidenced by the book's wealth of secondary and theoretical sources.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Sasson Sofer presents a sophisticated intellectual history of the institution of diplomacy and its vital importance for the ordering and preservation of the international society of states. In attempting to explain the enduring relevance of diplomacy, Sofer alerts the reader to three "constitutive principles" (p. i). These principles include the centrality of practice in shaping diplomatic culture, diplomacy's tendency toward stability, and the idea that diplomatic competence is indispensable in a world of independent states. The themes are explored in eight chapters that concern the history (chapter 1), scholarly and intellectual reflections (chapter 2), customs (chapter 3), locus of activities (chapter 4), tools (chapter 5), and habitus (chapter 6) of diplomacy. chapters 7 and 8 respectively provide a discussion and conclusion, postulating that notions about the decline of diplomacy do not obtain in contemporary international politics. Since practice precedes the institution, diplomacy is highly adaptive to new technologies and practices. Diplomats remain useful as symbols of peace and reconciliation among the most important political actors: states. Finally, diplomacy remains the best way to conduct relations within a culturally and politically diverse global society.

Theorizing on diplomacy can be attributed to the "practice turn" in philosophy and social science more generally, which seek to unearth how a diversity of actors transform their social...