| This thesis intends to show how the "genes" of culture express themselves in the behavior of a nation. It assesses the manner in which civilizational values inform the application of statecraft in foreign relations. The case studies are the two civilizational states of China and India and the period covered is the Cold War. Central to this work is an analysis of the specific elements of geography, history, psychology, ethics, philosophy, and ideology that generate the deep values and strong worldviews in the Chinese and Indian societies. These ideational factors shape cultural attitudes and behavior, which in turn affect the management of foreign affairs. The Introduction describes the method undertaken to determine the role of culture in foreign policy. Each of the two central chapters on China and India discusses in sub-sections the categories of elements noted above and assesses their impact upon the foreign policy of the nation during the Cold War. The Conclusion compares side by side how various aspects of culture explain certain significant and distinctive patterns in foreign policy of the two countries. This study finds that cultural values, primarily when functioning as a worldview, and especially in the form of an ideology, influence calculations of national interests and power politics in determining the foreign policy of China and India. Lastly, with respect to both China and India, this thesis shows that an analysis of the fundamental values of a culture confirms the general views others have of the culture more often than the fixed opinion that culture has of itself. |
