The author of this essay was a Democrat Senator representing the State of Arkansas. During the time the essay was published, Senator J. William Fulbright was the chairman of the United States foreign relations committee. The “Arrogance of Power” is a critical assessment of the United States involvement in the Vietnamese War.
According to Fulbright, America is a powerful nation and almost every nation in the world is very aware of this. America’s reason for involvement in the Korean War was to “defend freedom”. Fulbright notes that while this is a genuine cause, he doubts that military power and display of dominance can accomplish this mission.
This is considering that the chaos in Vietnam were very deep-rooted and entrenched in the Vietnamese way of life. He goes on to cite incidences where American troops were facing hostility from the people they were supposed to be helping.
The reason for this according to Fulbright is because even volunteers are only able to help people who are willing to make an effort. According to the essay, America cannot impact its democracy to the rest of the world through excessive involvement in the affairs of other nations.
Instead, it would be more effective if it accomplished this by defending its own democracy. Fulbright concludes by saying that avoiding the dangers of power can bring happiness to Americans while ensuring there is peace in the rest of the world (Fulbright 1).
Fulbright’s choice of topic is very relevant. The title of the essay sums up his topic of interest. “The Arrogance of Power” is a title that puts the issues that are addressed by this essay into perspective. The writer’s choice of topic was relevant when this essay was authored in 1966, and it is still relevant in today’s America. Fulbright critiques America’s foreign policy in this essay.
The department has been criticized for the way it recently handled the Iraq and Afghanistan issues. Currently, focus is on relations with Iran, Syria, among other countries. It is for this reason that Fulbright’s choice of topic is of monumental relevance. Fulbright’s reasoning could have averted the debacle that happened in Afghanistan and Iraq a few years ago.
Fulbright talks about the arrogance that comes with power. In his view, power should be used to influence. However, it should not be paraded to weaker nations with the aim of imparting American values. This was a rising concern in the 1960s and to date, it still lingers.
For instance, in the last paragraph he argues that avoiding arrogance of power would bring happiness to Americans and spread peace to the rest of the world (Fulbright 1). This sentiment could not have been more accurate. In places where arrogance of power by Americans has been witnessed, the results have coincided with this sentiment.
Iraq is one such example. To date they are yet to live peacefully and Americans never got any satisfaction from this exercise. There are also concerns that America could be losing its “super power” status. This was one of the concerns Fulbright was addressing in “The Arrogance of Power”.
The choice of words and the thoughtfulness employed in this essay is remarkable. The essay can be classified as a very successful dissent mechanism. This is true especially when one takes into consideration that Fulbright was protesting against actions of his own party (Brown 24).
It is usually hard to go against the grain and be successful. However, the author of this essay is against actions of the party that got him elected into the senate. His efforts can also be considered successful. This is mostly due to his choice of words. The author only addresses the issues he can back up with some evidence.
He also uses examples to back his claims. For instance, he gives an example of the Vietnamese protests against American troops. The author also avoids personal attacks against either the Americans or any other particular person.
Fulbright criticizes a lot without offering any robust solutions or alternatives. Throughout the essay he goes on about the wrong approach taken by America. However, he fails to give clear guidelines as to what should have been done. All his solutions are somehow indirect as compared to his direct mode of criticism.
For instance, he gives an example of how boy scouts cannot force old women to cross the road if the women do not want to (Fulbright 1). This example is supposed to infer that the Vietnamese are not ready for the democracy Americans are taking to them. This is one example of this indirect mode of providing solutions.
Generally the essay is very well written and articulated. It exemplifies how to politely criticize or take a stand against serious issues. The longevity and relevance of the subject matter is also remarkable given that the issues addressed are still relevant in today’s political arena.
Another strong point of the essay is that the author’s assertions were somehow realized. It is not clear when America will finally streamline its foreign policy issues, but until then this essay will most likely remain relevant.
Works Cited
Brown, Eugene. J, WIlliam Fulbright: Advice and Dissent, Iowa City, IA: University of Iowa Press, 1985. Print.
Fulbright, William 1966, The Arrogance of Power. PDF file. Web.