World Insights: America: Love It/Hate It, How the World Sees the United States

For centuries, people from all over the world have been fascinated by America and in particular the United States. Sometimes their vision of the "New World" is idealistic and sometimes it's distrustful. This talk will examine some of the possible reasons for this love-hate relationship, and question whether they still apply today. Mort Guiney is a Professor of French and Literature at Kenyon College. For most of his life, he has been interested in the complicated and contradictory ways in which American society is perceived outside our borders. Together with a colleague in the Philosophy Department, Juan DePascuale, he has developed a class at Kenyon titled "Visions of America", which serves as the inspiration for today's presentation.