Cosmpolitanism
Due to the nature of the increasingly “global village” of today, there lies much debate in how to deal with relations between cultures of differing beliefs and ideologies. Madeline Albright’s “Faith and Diplomacy” suggests that religion is a key factor in such international relations, and is necessary to adjust one’s policies and strategies in order to deal with international and intra-national disputes. Albright appears to draw many of her ideas presented in “Faith and Diplomacy” from Kwame Anthony Appiah’s works on “cosmopolitanism.” As such, Albright does exemplify Appiah’s call for a cosmopolitan approach to the increasingly “global village” of today because both agree that there is a need for toleration and understanding, not agreement, and that there is a common power behind certain ideas and values that people hold.
“Cosmopolitanism” as defined by The Merriam-Webster New Collegiate Dictionary is “having worldwide rather than limited or provincial scope or bearing.” Kwame Anthony Appiah’s ideas of “cosmopolitanism” following that idea, engage two distinct ideas. “One, is the idea that that we have obligations to others, obligations that stretch beyond those to whom we are related by the ties of kith and kind, or even the more formal ties of a shared citizenship. The other is that we take seriously the value not just of human life but of particular human lives, which means taking an interest in the practices and beliefs that lend them significance.” (Appiah. 69) Appiah asserts that it is because of the internet, the massive influx of free information that provided new challenges to cosmopolitanism. “Cosmopolitanism” accepts that people are different, and that these differences help us to learn and create bonds between us. It isn’t expected that every single person or society, follow a single mode of life, but that we all have our separate and individual values, and those should be respected. He contends that while “understanding one another may be hard; it
“Cosmopolitanism” as defined by The Merriam-Webster New Collegiate Dictionary is “having worldwide rather than limited or provincial scope or bearing.” Kwame Anthony Appiah’s ideas of “cosmopolitanism” following that idea, engage two distinct ideas. “One, is the idea that that we have obligations to others, obligations that stretch beyond those to whom we are related by the ties of kith and kind, or even the more formal ties of a shared citizenship. The other is that we take seriously the value not just of human life but of particular human lives, which means taking an interest in the practices and beliefs that lend them significance.” (Appiah. 69) Appiah asserts that it is because of the internet, the massive influx of free information that provided new challenges to cosmopolitanism. “Cosmopolitanism” accepts that people are different, and that these differences help us to learn and create bonds between us. It isn’t expected that every single person or society, follow a single mode of life, but that we all have our separate and individual values, and those should be respected. He contends that while “understanding one another may be hard; it
Cited: Albright, Madeline. “Faith and Diplomacy.” Barrios. 34-42 Appiah, Kwame Anthony. “Making Conversation” and “Primacy of Practice.” Barrios. 66-82 Barrios, Barclay. Emerging: Contemporary Readings for Writers. 2nd Ed. Boston, Bedford. 2013 “Cosmopolitanism.” Merriam-Webster New Collegiate Dictionary. 11th Ed. 2008