The Triumph of Emotions

Fifteen years ago, Dominique Moïsi famously argued that the world was increasingly shaped by a ‘clash of emotions’ as the old politics of ideology faded. Asia was hopeful; the West was fearful; and much of the rest of the world felt humiliated. Moïsi warned that this was a dangerously unpredictable world, that authorities had a responsibility to keep tempers cool. In this bold new book, Moïsi reports that they have failed: We live in a world where emotions have triumphed.

One of the world’s most influential analysts of international affairs, Moïsi explains how and why the problems he identified in his path-breaking The Geopolitics of Emotion have deepened. More insidious emotions have been provoked by the rise of nationalism and populism, the retreat from globalization, the acceleration of climate change, and the dark sides of information technology. Raw emotions such as anger and even hatred have triumphed both in international and domestic politics—evident not just in leaders’ extreme rhetoric but now in open war in Ukraine. Against the backdrop of the US-China rivalry, a new Tripolar Order is emerging, featuring hope and resentment in the Global South, humiliation and anger in the Global East, and fear and resilience in the Global West.

The Triumph of Emotions is an illuminating and passionately argued book for our fraught times. Introduction
1 The War in Ukraine and the Emotional Divorce of the World
2 The Emergence of the Global South
3 The Hardening of the Global East
4 The Global West Between Polarisation and Resilience
Conclusion

Index

‘Human beings are neither solitary individuals nor rational calculating machines. They are, instead, intensely social and deeply emotional. Dominique Moïsi brings these realities together quite brilliantly in this important book. Crucially, fear is increasingly prevailing over hope at a time of great global stress. It is most urgent that we recognize the dangers this creates.’
Martin Wolf, Chief Economics Commentator, Financial Times

‘It’s an important question why emotions are so prevalent in politics now. Moïsi offers a wonderfully knowledgeable and beautifully written tour of the problem, bursting with ideas and images.’
Kori Schake, American Enterprise Institute

‘Enlightening and fascinating… Between edifying analyses and striking images… Dominique Moïsi opens up dizzying perspectives.’
Les Echos

Dominique Moïsi is Senior Counselor at the Institut Montaigne, a Visiting Research Professor at King’s College London, and a founding member of the Institut français des relations internationals (Ifri). He has lectured at Sciences Po, Harvard University, and the College of Europe in Natolin, and he has written for a number of publications including the Financial Times, Die Welt, Les Echos, and Ouest France.