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Edmund White, the Painted Boy
Edmund White, the Painted Boy
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Edmund White’s story “The Painted Boy” is extracted from his recent novel, Hotel de Dream. In this novel, White writes from the point of view of Stephen Crane, the American fiction writer and poet from the end of the 19th century. You are probably familiar with The Red Badge of Courage (1895) and perhaps Maggie, A Girl of the Streets (1893); the narrator mentions this novel on page 321. White’s book from which our story is drawn gives a fictionalized account of Crane’s inner struggles as an artist.
Commonly considered Stephen Crane’s greatest accomplishment, The Red Badge of Courage, published in 1895 when Crane was still largely unknown, ranks among the foremost literary achievements of the modern era. The gritty social realism of his first novel, Maggie: A Girl of the Streets had earned praise from literati such as Hamlin Garland and William Dean Howells, but Crane probably gave away more copies than were actually sold. The Red Badge went through two editions before the end of the year in which it was published; by March of the following year the novel was in eighth place on the international booksellers’ list and had gone through fourteen printings. Unfortunately, unremunerated contracts with publishers and a general lack of good business sense kept Crane insolvent for much of his life. But with the publication of Red Badge, Crane achieved almost overnight celebrity. It was made into a film in 1951, director John Huston.
The Red Badge of Courage follows the protagonist, young Henry Fleming, through his experience as a Union Army private during the American Civil War. The book concerns Henry’s state of mind before his first battle, and his initial war experiences, when he flees from battle; it then explores Henry’s experiences away from his regiment; finally it focuses on Henry recovering his courage and returning to his regiment, his subsequent heroism, and his final sense of achieving manhood. These themes, which you’ll probably remember from having read the novel in middle school, are meant to be in your mind as you read Edmund White’s story. We’ll return later to the interpretations that come from possible comparisons.
-5626101460500In the beginning of “The Painted Boy,” the narrator establishes the character as someone affected by the kind of anxieties we have come to associate with a writer or an artist who’s had some success: can I still turn out something good? Will readers like it? Will the critics like it? Will my artist friends respect it? Will they be jealous of me for it? An additional attempt to display Crane’s anxiety comes with the number of contemporary writers the narrator puts into the story. Such a list of important artists, all producing their art at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries, suggests no small amount of anxiety – commonly referred to as the anxiety of influence. Here are the names he drops: Oscar Wilde, James Huneker [music writer and critic], Hamlin Garland [novelist, short story writer: Boy Life in the Prairie, 1899], William Dean Howells [American novelist and critic], and Walt Whitman. There is a little bit of name dropping and a little bit of jealousy and a great deal of anxiety that surfaces in these pages.
In addition to writers, the narrator also points to famous musicians: Vladimir de Pachmann (or “Chopineze” as Huneker called him), Camille Saint-Saëns and Tchaikovsky. Later there is a mention of Huysmans [French novelist] and Wagner [German composer]. The references to musicians continue the theme of anxiety, but they add another dimension, which has to do with a possible overlap between literature and music. On the first page of the story, Crane boasts that he’s the “only one of [his] generation to add a beat here and steal a note there. Rubato, it’s called in music” (319). The technique of rubato allows for liberties to be taken in tempo and is used to express emotion. This gives a clear clue as to how to read the story.
As you continue reading, you discover that the anxiety is not restricted to the fears of an artist who’s apprehensive about his next publication; what’s worrying Crane is his unexplained need to establish some sort of relationship with the “painted boy” and what others might think of it should they find out.-6108701841500 We see that Crane wonders about Hamlin’s advice that he burn the text he’s recently written and that he shares with Hamlin. Is he jealous, Crane wonders, which is possibly just another way of expressing his own jealousy and/or insecurity. This section plays around with the introduction of the title character, Elliott, without really introducing him. We are led to believe that this is the protagonist of the story Crane is writing and that Hamlin has just suggested he toss onto the fire; only later in the story will we discover the coincidence of the two Elliotts. So we have to ask: does Crane suspect that Hamlin rejects this writing because it is so very good? Because it borders on the vulgar? Or both? This is when he brings up Wilde, so we know we’ve passed into a homosexual context here. the overlap of the story Crane tells and the story he talks about having written cause a certain confusion because of the duplication. One of the aspects of art that has been discussed, debated, argued, and manipulated since Antiquity is hoe and to what degree art should imitate nature. This is one of the tactics White is using in “The Painted Boy.”
At this point, we are asked to think about the mise-en-abyme structure. “Mise-en-abyme” is a French expression that refers to multiple repetitions of an image one within the other – think about the 360° mirror used in the TV show “What Not to Wear.” The mise-en-abyme structure as used in literature establishes a reduplication of images or concepts referring to the text as a whole. Mise-en-abyme is a play of signifiers within a text, a duplication of sub-texts mirroring each other. This mirroring can get to the point where meaning can be rendered unstable and in this respect can be seen as part of the process of deconstruction. The film-within-a-film is a classic example of mise-en-abyme. However, Crane’s just burnt 40 pages, and we can tell that the story we’re reading is only 12 pages long. So the next thought would be to wonder whether the story we are reading is a eulogy for the one he has burnt.
-6108707620000What you’re looking at is a classic example in painting of mise-en-abyme. This painting of the Infanta of Spain, the daughter of the King, known as “Las Meninas,” was painted in 1656 by Velazquea. It depicts the scene in the painter’s studio during the painting session – thus a mise-en-abyme. Upon closer examination, however, we see a mirror hanging in the back of the studio the image of King Philip IV and his wife Queen Mariana as they look on during the painting session. This detail places emphasis on the of the on-looker, which normally would be you and me as museum goers, looking at the painting as it hangs in a museum. We further notice the detail with which Velazquez has painted himself, making this painting at least partially a self-portrait, focusing on himself almost as much as on the Infanta, and certainl with more significance than on the royal couple given the comparative degree of detail and precision of painting. These considerations provide a variety of thought processes you will need to consider about Edmund White’s role, writing a short story about a write who writes a story about a story he’s writing at the same time he tells the story of meeting the boy about whom the story – well, the stories are written.
Of all the people Crane assumes might have something to say about “his” Elliott – and again, at this point in the story we assume this refers to his written story, but we’ll soon find out it also means, or perhaps instead, the young man he’s about to tell us about – so after all the condemnations he assumes he’ll get, he then talks about Huneker’s possible acceptance. He gives details about Huneker’s life that show him to be more tolerant and more experimental than the others; one more detail puts us back on the homosexual path: Crane states that “Huneker also has a quasiscientific interest in inversion” (322). “Inversion” was a term used in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to indicate homosexuality, because it was seen as a tendency that inverted the “normal” practice of sexuality. Then Crane brings up Whitman and Pachmann and Tchaikovsky, all of whom were known to be gay. Similar terms used later in the story are: “onanism “ which is another 19th-century term that comes from Onan, son of Judah (Gen. xxxviii.9), who spilled his seed on the ground rather than impregnate his dead brother’s wife; this is a reference to the Biblical instruction for a brother to mate with his deceased brother’s widow in order to produce a (male) child from the same gene pool. From this reference, the term came to mean masturbation, and from that gay sex – in other words, any method for a man to ejaculate other than the hypothetically principal reason, which would be to impregnate a woman. The term “inversion” is used again on page 322, and on page 327 the expression “like that” – to be like that was a euphemism that was commonly used through the first half of the 20th to avoid saying homosexual, either out of caution or disgust. Huneker’s attitudes toward homosexuality are conflicted, just enough to make him the only person that Crane could expect to at pay some small amount of tolerant attention to his story.
-639445-224790000So now we know that we’re in a world of gay people, a possibly gay relationship, and a potentially salacious text. But before moving on with the plot, let’s look at some of the other clues White gives us. He pits “veritism” and “impressionism” and “realism” against each other (321), letting us know that he’s going to into the realm of illusion that’s based on a certain type of realism, a sense of reality that is seen through maybe cloudy or tinted glasses, so that we see something that looks like reality but with a particular slant to it. This is related to what I said earlier about art being more or less an imitation of nature, of reality. On the same page, the narrator toys with the term “truth” and “gritty truth,” suggesting again that the story is going to present a certain type of reality that may be more than some people can handle. In literary criticism we refer to such texts as “naturalist” and the era in which Crane lived was the period when naturalism became popular in literature and art. Some of the sordid or rough references that come up later in the story are the urge to vomit, consumption and phthism – both 19th-century terms for tuberculosis; he also uses “lunger” (326) to mean tuberculin, which is of course a disease that affects the lungs.
This is a poster from the early 20th century warning the public about TB. Notice the stylized cross, implying the moral implications commonly associated with the disease. Such moral judgments are typically attached to unexplained diseases, imputing the fault to the victim because of his or her immoral behavior. Cancer was for a long time treated the same way, as is HIV/AIDS today by some. The description of Elliott, this time the actual boy Crane meets, evokes quite a squalid, unclean image. Clearly the notion of homosexuality, or better the possibility of an attraction to a homosexual encounter, is of interest to Crane precisely because of its foul and nasty connotations – or possibilities.
-69659537655500-696595-117348000Let’s return to the “real” story about meeting Elliott (starting at bottom of page 322). Huneker and Crane came upon the “painted boy” in downtown Manhattan. I particularly want to look at the passage on page 327 where the term “like that” is first used. [read passage]
Here we find the use of the feminine pronoun used for a gay man, which again was commonly used into the second half of the 20th century and can still be heard today among some gay men. [It is commonly used among drag queens, that that is an entirely different experience.] Similarly, “Nancy” and “Mary” were common appellations until only a couple decades ago. I don’t think I need to explain the other terms in the paragraph.
What we learn from this passage is, not surprisingly, the importance of discourse and terminology – not only because this is a piece of literature where the importance of language is a given, but because the use of codes and encoded discourse was a matter of security and safety for the gay community until fairly recently. Given that in many sectors of society homosexuality was immoral, illegal, and disgusting, one couldn’t be too careful about the language one used; when in public, one had to encode all exchanges, and when trying to determine whether someone was gay or gay-friendly or not, one had to proceed with caution. And as this discourse became part of people’s daily lives, it was also incorporated in the exchanges they shared with their close friends. Feminine pronouns, for example, were not necessarily an indication of effeminacy, rather the code one used when speaking of a couple, where conventional society understood male and female. And after being referred to as the female for the purposes of safe conversation, the slippage – a linguistic term that means a word’s usage slipping into a adjacent reference – became natural, thus using “she” and “her” became common even when safety was not an issue.
Elliott is clearly prostituting himself. His face is “painted” (lipstick and mascara) and he’s wearing a girl’s silk shirt with ruffles. He faints and Crane carries him into the hotel lobby, but he’s embarrassed to be seen doing so and ashamed at feeling embarrassed. These details about Crane’s emotional response are the key to interpreting his engagement in this seemingly odd relationship. Note the importance of the sentence that ends the paragraph on top of page 325: “Maybe that is why I was so sympathetic to Elliott […] I’d had to carry him through a sea of disapproval.” He does feel revulsion (“I feared I might vomit”), and he noticed Huneker’s amusement at observing his discomfort, thus exhibiting another level of observation and emotion. He is the outside observer, with the reader being at yet another level of observation, thus continuing the mise-en-abyme structure. The nature of the relationship takes on linguistic dimensions when Crane asks Elliott not to call him sir but to use his name, Stevie. He protects Elliott from Huneker’s dismissive comments about his lifestyle. The conversation proceeds, establishing a warm relationship, where Crane looks after Elliott and calls in a doctor. When he sees that the boy risks dying by the time he’s 30, he remembers that himself, he’d expected to be dead by 30, and that maybe that was why he was so fearless in battle; this is a clear reference to the subject of The Red Badge of Courage. But it’s also a clear indication of Elliott’s being a reflection of himself – and again we’re in the mise-en-abyme structure. Crane confides in Elliott that he’d been sexually abused by his father and brothers; this revelation causes a shift in the relationship, as Elliott asks him to continue to give details about his father’s tendency to anger. Then Elliott tells him stories, as Crane takes notes – indicating again that he was planning for the story he’d later write. Crane is keen for Elliott to appreciate him as a friend, as his biographer of sorts, but not “as his man” (330).
-6203954191000The story ends with Crane feeling sorry that Elliott would never appreciate “the whole sweet insouciance of a natural boy’s mindless summer.” We need to contemplate whether this is insensitive condescension or a realization that for the first time he realizes there were other ways to experience childhood. The fact that he then, presumably, goes on the write this story, at least to begin it, and then to read it to Huneker, who was there when he first met Elliott, and then to burn it opens up the question as to what the experience may have meant for Crane. What is very important at this point of our interpretation is to remember that, while White’s story is based on historical figures, it is still very much a piece of fiction: we can no more psychoanalyze these fictional characters than we can cure Elliott of TB. What we can and must do, though, is contemplate the way White turns the narrative, especially clear at the end when the beginnings of some quite new thoughts for Crane start to brew, presumably giving rise to some beautifully sensitive prose. Huneker says (319) that this is the best thing Crane has ever written. We must remember that what we have is not the beautiful story that Huneker read; we are not privy to that. We have only the preamble, what leads up to the writing. We’re given hints about what insights Crane will bring to the story, but we never have the pleasure of reading it. Thus the story, the one Crane burns, is of less significance than the process of formulating experience into thoughts, emotions, and personal conclusions about oneself.
-620395-192659000-6203952159000 [Two quick comments here: the reference to Ganymede (325) is an allusion to the mythological character who was abducted by Zeus in the form of an eagle to serve as cupbearer to the gods and as Zeus’s beloved. It is a common symbol for a young homosexual, usually in the company of an older man. Second, the mention in the hotel restaurant of “a joint” refers to a cut of lamb – not what you’re thinking it is.]
So, your Writing Assignment essay will be to answer one of the following questions:
How do the many levels of storytelling that we see in “The Painted Boy” affect the way in which we understand the story? What tactic(s) does White take to relay the significance of Crane’s, and thus his own, relationship to Elliott – where Elliott symbolizes…. What does Elliott symbolize?
Despite the title of the story, “The Painted Boy” is clearly about Crane’s experience. What are the indicators of this aspect of the tale and how do they work together to make an intriguing double tale?
What elements of Sedgwick and/or Butler do you find in Edmund White’s story?
EDLD 673 Instructional Leadership & Supervision
EDLD 673: Instructional Leadership & Supervision
Questionnaire filed by Janet Kosino-Littke an elementary school teacher in Arcadia ElementarySchool in Kalamazoo
PART 1
Status of the Written & Communicated Curriculum
Is the curriculum aligned with the Common Core and/or State Standards?
The school curriculum is aligned with state standards.
How is the curriculum organized and sequenced, horizontally and vertically?
The curriculum is vertically aligned across different grade levels. Its instruction based under the existing standards to improve performance but decrease instructional time.
Have you identified “Power Standards?”
In Arcadia Elementary power standards are the learning goals that are important for the students before they can complete their course or attain their required grade.
How are curriculum expectations communicated to students and parents?
The school involves both the students and the parents in developing curriculum activities and in setting the annual academic goals.
Status of the Delivered Curriculum (Classroom Instruction)
How is time allocated to the delivery of the written curriculum?
Time is allocated on development, implementation and evaluation. At the school we have strongly embraced benchmark literacy.
How are learning goals communicated to the whole class and to individual students?
Learning goals are communicated to both whole class and individual students. To whole class learning goals are communicated using tiered assignments and open questions while to individual students targeted questions that require critical thinking are used.
What instructional strategies do you use and how are those strategies adaptable to different learners?
The instructional strategies that we use in the school include; appropriate text, differentiated learning and high interest reading materials. To make appropriate text adaptable to all students the school has organized flexible leveled reading groups, in differentiated learning independent book study projects and book reports and finally in enhancing high interest reading the school has increased classroom and school libraries, reading logs and besides just right books.
Do you provide digital learning experiences for students?
Yes the school allows digital learning experience by providing intranet.
What are your homework expectations?
For my assignment I expect students to turn in well researched and styled academic papers using the school portal.
Status of the Assessed Curriculum
Have state/national/local assessment data been used in adapting classroom instruction?
State assessment data has been used to severally in adapting classroom instruction since the state provides ranking for schools and students on the same.
What assessments are used to inform the instruction?
The most common assessment embraced here are state ranking, students attendance statistics and parents feedback.
How do you collect, access and use student learning data on an ongoing basis?
The school library and the curriculum department work hand in hand, thus ensuring the two departments assist each other in monitoring what items are required for the school and the quality required.
How do you provide feedback to students on their learning?
We provide feedback to students by providing a mark or grade for their work; this is also accompanied by a brief comment like good work which may be written or verbal.
What types of student work are used to evaluate learning? (collect example of student work)
Different types of student work are used to evaluate learning; the most common are academic assignments, students’ class participation and extra curriculum activities such as sports and art.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The school curriculum is set in line with the state standards that ensure that learning is structured to benefit all students. It also requires that a process of learning is carefully implemented and should end up with students’ and school assessment. In this particular school too much emphasis is based on state ranking which provide evaluation for the school and students.
However, I would suggest that the school can improve learning and the school in general if assessment is mostly done by analyzing the school’s annual vision and mission. Since the school has limited resources and a number of students with special needs achieving the actual vision and mission set at the school should be counted as success.
PART 2
Status of Shared Leadership
Who makes decisions, how are decisions made, and how are decisions communicated in your school?
Decision making in the school is quit decentralized since decisions are made from all departments and then further discussed though the principal. Departments in the school are organized in relation to academic, extra curriculum and students’ welfare and all these departments are responsible for forwarding their decisions to the top office. Decisions are communicated through memos, arranged meetings and using the school portal.
What is the performance evaluation system for the school and how is it carried out and used by principals and teachers?
The school evaluation system is grade based where by grades are allocated for different achievements. Achievements are carried out by ensuring that the four steps are carried out; planning and preparation, instruction, classroom environment and professional responsibilities.
Status of Current State of School Culture
What types of activities promote shared learning between the principal and staff?
The activities that promote shared learning activities between the principal and the staff include; the decision making process, arranged meeting, organized extra curriculum activities and besides open suggestion boxes.
What evidence is there of shared language, common focus, and shared commitments – what are they and how are they established and supported?
The school has shared language, common focus and commitments as evidenced by departmental individual goals. All departments are expected to set their own annual goals, but if we can clearly analyze these multiple goals they all sum up to the school annual vision and mission.
Status of the Current State of Professionalism in the School
What is the working relationship between the principal and staff?
The principal and the teacher work together in establishing the school goals. The teacher assists the principal in carrying out his leadership roles through abiding to the laid down rules and regulations.
What is the working relationship between staff members?
The staff members have a partnership kind of relationship where by all the members work together for a common goal. Even with our different roles and sectors all of us want to ensure the school an excellent place that assists the students to prosper.
What is the working relationship between staff and students?
The staff and students have a validation type of relationship. It is important since the students need to feel that they have a lot to run from the teacher.
What is the relationship between staff and parents?
The relationship between the teacher and the parents is quit scripted; the teacher always comes along when their assistance is needed in the school. Parents respect and appreciate the teacher, they also know their importance and this is the same for the teacher. Therefore, the two groups relate well and assist each other when need be.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
After analyzing the schools curriculum and different modes of operation I can confidently say that; a schools success is dependent on every member of the school. For the curriculum to be effective and assist in producing successful students, it has to be developed by both the teachers and the students. Further, effective curriculum should be backed by unity in the school among or the stake holder; the students, parents, teachers and the principal to ensure all of them have a common goal.
However, I can make some recommendation to our system in Arcadia elementary school on the bases of curriculum development and implementation. The school can ensure that the systems developed take consideration for students with special needs and above all has room for improvement by setting long term goals.
E-DIPLOMACY A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW
Name:
Instructor:
Institution: Hamad Almuftah, Prof. Vishanth Weerakkody, and Dr. Ramzi El-Haddadeh
Institution: Business school, Brunel University, United Kingdom
Course: Political Science
Date:
E-DIPLOMACY: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW
Abstract Digital diplomacy is the tool used for virtual representation. It entails the incorporation of information and communication technology for attaining foreign policy goals. Digital diplomacy can also be defined as as an electronic component of public diplomacy. Consequently, it is also recommended as e-Diplomacy. Researchers have conducted very few studies in this area thereby contributing to a significant research gap. The aim of this paper is to provide an analysis of the current e-diplomacy studies based on a systematic literature review methodology. The results have highlighted some key findings. One of the key findings in this regards is that, most of the studies were conducted in North America and Europe. The other key finding is that, most of them adopted qualitative methods to support the literature using empirical evidences. A profiling table has been constructed to shape a starting point and useful references to which researchers can refer. Exploring areas that might need further investigations and future studies has also been done.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TOC o “1-3” h z u HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787776″Abstract PAGEREF _Toc404787776 h 1
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787777″TABLE OF CONTENTS2
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787778″INTRODUCTION3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787779″LITERATURE REVIEW4
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787780″METHODOLOGY7
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787781″FINDINGS10
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787782″Categories of publication10
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787783″Countries or regions where the studies were conducted11
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787784″Methodology adopted13
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787785″Profiling table: Key findings, short brief, limitation and recommendation15
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787786″DISCUSSION, RESEARCH CONTRIBUTION AND CONCLUSION27
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787787″LIMITATION AND FUTURE RESEARCH29
HYPERLINK l “_Toc404787788″WORK CITED30
INTRODUCTION
Digital diplomacy, also known as e-Diplomacy, has been understood as an internet application and new tools as well as resources of technology that are used to help secure diplomatic goals (Hanson, 2012). In the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (2012), digital diplomacy has been considered as an important tool in the management of foreign policy issues via the internet. This definition is however limited as it does not cover internal electronic collaboration processes, mobile phone, or related technologies. The US State Department (2013) apply the term 21st Century Statecraft to encompass the elements and applications of digital diplomacy.
A review of relevant literature depicted that there is lack of adequate studies that have examined E-diplomacy and digital diplomacy. Batora (2008) affirms that all the diplomatist literature focuses on various aspects of diplomacy, negotiation process, diplomatic function, culture, habits, and history. Very few papers and studies on the issue have been found. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive summary of the current literature relevant to e-diplomacy. This is done by applying the systematic literature review technique. In this regard, all the existing studies are reviewed and they classified basing on relevancy to the research area, methodology adopted and country where the study is conducted. A profiling table is created. It consists of the reference, the methodology adopted, relevancy to the research topic, key finding, and brief description, country where the study was adopted, a note of how might a researcher in the field of E-diplomacy benefit from the study, and finally the limitation and the recommendation for future study. The objective of the profiling table is to help researcher in the field of e-diplomacy find a starting point and useful references they can refer to as well as exploring areas that might need further investigations and future studies.
The first section of the paper is a literature review of digital diplomacy. Topics such as the importance of ICT in diplomacy, tools of e-diplomacy, areas of uses within the foreign ministry and international relation, the effects of ICT on diplomacy and many other are discussed in details. Next, the methodology adopted is outlined. After that, the findings section that consists of four sub sections as mentioned above is presented. Finally, the results are analysed and discussed in the conclusion section supported by the recommendations for future studies.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The 21st century saw a significant growth in information communication technology and its applications. The world has advanced to a significant extent in ICT and even more advancements are expected in the years to come (Hilbert and Lopez, 2011). The developments of the past 5 years were very significant, especially with the major advancements in ICT, which have been seen in recent years. Technological changes have affected all the aspects of life, from the smallest family unit to the society, also reaching the international setting. Foreign affairs and diplomacy have not always been ready to support novelty in the foundations of communication and spread of the data because of the sensitive nature of communications. For example, the telegrams were viewed as the end of diplomacy in the 1840s (Abeyagoonasekera and Ranasinghe, 2012). This was, however, not the case. Even at their slowest pace, the diplomatic corps has used new tools and have gone through changes in the environmental affected by technological developments. IT influences two key factors, which are important in diplomacy, mostly on space and time. Communication tools and settings have established the way towards the efficient use of time and space in foreign affairs. The 2011 assassination of Osama bin Laden was relayed in different parts of the world almost as soon as it happened, while the spread of the news on the independence of the U.S. took a long time to reach Great Britain (Abeyagoonasekera and Ranasinghe, 2012). The power of IT is to reduce spatial and time gaps. Technology can be considered a double-edged sword and people have gone through its highs and lows via related experiences and trials. With the increasing involvement ICT into diplomatic affairs, political scientists refer this transformation as “the shift in the paradigm.” It offers a much more targeted way of delivering information, and empowers the government in establishing new connections across the globe. Moreover, e-diplomacy has changed the role of diplomats; they are no more bound to carry all the official documents, as these files are always present at the distance of their fingertips.
The concept of digital diplomacy is explained by some people in terms of Actor-Network Theory or ANT (Nweke). This theory represents the relationship between “actor” and “actant,” actors are all non-human elements i.e. computers, texts, hybrids etc. Meanwhile the human element is referred to as actant. Putting ANT into the context of e-diplomacy, diplomats become actants, while social media and machines maintain their position as actors. The Actor Network Theory provides the ingredients that are required to conceptualize and reconstruct the social space (Nweke). (More about the theory is provided in another section) “Foreign ministries will have little option but to take advantages of IT if they are to remain competitive with other parts of government, their analogues in other countries, and in some respects, the media “(Eldon, 1994)
The information and communication technology (ICT) has undergone several transformations before evolving into ICT of which we are aware. There are plenty of tools and applications offered by Information and communication technology to carry out virtual diplomacy. The most extensive tool that is used for e-diplomacy is the World Wide Web, which is a network that connects information or the source with the receptor. This allows simultaneous retrieval of information by different computers. The content on a website can be secured through providing limited access or it could have an open access. Websites allow storage and the access of information to people all around the globe. Information can also be preserved in the form of web database. Governments for storing important documents related to public policy, which are retrieved by common individuals, can use this tool. This may include personal information of individuals or a biometric database that is only accessible by an individual. It may also provide answers to some of the frequently asked questions, along with other important implications of official protocol (Permyakova, RIAC).
The social media is regarded as the key driver in the development of digital diplomacy. Ambassadors and other foreign office officials use this medium to communicate with the citizens all around the globe. Moreover, they assist citizens. Some of the most commonly used platforms of the social media are Facebook, Twitter, Linked-in, Integra, and YouTube. The invention of Web 2.0 technology was the main force behind the development of all these platforms. Today there are more than eighty ministries of foreign affairs all over the globe that run official pages and accounts on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. One of the key elements in promotion of digital diplomacy via social media is that people can directly interact with government officials; they can present their own opinion, or ask them about government’s agenda (Permyakova, RIAC).
Provision of online services is another tool that is regularly used by embassies. Visa information and other associated documents can be delivered online by the citizens from any part of the world. Moreover, embassies use internet as a tool for cultural exchange, it offers various readings, documents, videos and other sources for promoting cultural exchange (Permyakova, RIAC).
ICT is also used by for intergovernmental exchange of documents; from one headquarter to the other. For instance, the identification of illegal migrants can be made by sharing information of individuals who have expired visa or who have entered the borders without permission. By sharing such information via internet with head offices, embassies can improve their efficiency by several folds. Online conference calls and webinars are widely used by diplomats all around the world in order to address their targeted audience. Moreover, they are used by diplomats as a mode of sharing their views with masses in general, and to calm them down in the state of emergency, where visuals become more important than words (Permyakova, RIAC).
METHODOLOGY
Methodology is often defined as a systematic and logical analysis of relevant and appropriate research methods being applied to wide arrays of research studies and fields. Methodology encompasses concepts like research paradigm, hypotheses, theoretical models, empirical analysis, qualitative design, and quantitative analysis (Bernard, 12-14). Furthermore, a methodology is not intended to offer solutions, but the theoretical underpinning for understanding which research methods can be used and applied to garner relevant results and outcomes. A number of researchers further believed that a methodology is a general research strategy outlining the way in which a research can be initiated and completed while highlighting relevant solutions and results based on the reasons and logic (Babbie, 10).
A systematic literature review is used as the methodology of this study. It aims at providing a comprehensive summary of current literature that is relevant to research topic, e-diplomacy, or digital diplomacy in this case. In general, the first phase of a systematic review is searching for the literature for relevant papers in which all the database used such as web of science, Scopus or Google scholar are listed as well as any hand searched individual papers, article websites books ….and so on . Next, the titles, the abstracts, and sometime the body of the identified sources are checked against pre-determined criteria for eligibility and relevancy (Systematic review). The methodology adopted in this paper is illustrated in the diagram below:
Fig.1, Research Methodology
Taking into account the data of Fig. 1, the research methodology, which is based on a systematic literature review, can be explained as follows:
Phase 1 (Initial search): over 3000 results were found by using two key words that are “e-diplomacy” and “digital diplomacy.” The results are a combination of books, journal articles, theses, online resources, and e-books. The Initial search was performed through Amazon.com, Google scholar, Scopus database, and web of science.
Phase 2 (Using specific key words): Most of the results found from phase 1 were irrelevant at all. Fortunately, the search engines of the databases mentioned above have advanced search options such as specifying the exact key words and combining them. The combinations of the keywords used are “diplomacy AND ICT,” “diplomacy AND digital diplomacy AND technology diplomacy AND social media”, “diplomacy AND virtual”, ‘consular services AND ICT”, “e-diplomacy, bilateral relation and ICT, and foreign ministry AND ICT”. 495 results were found.
Phase 3 (Looking at the titles): The 495 results were reduced to 118 by looking at the titles of the documents. Only relevant titles were considered.
Phase 4 (Sorting and removing redundancies): As four different search engines and databases were used, sorting of the references was required to eliminate redundant studies. A program known as REFWORKS and Microsoft Excel were used. REFWORKS is a software package for managing references, which is web-based. The results from this phase amounted to 71.
Phase 5 (Reading the abstracts): Sometimes the titles of the documents can be misleading, therefore, the abstracts and /or the summaries of each document and studies were read. Only 32 were found to be relevant enough.
Phase 6 (Skimming the body): The bodies of the 32 studies were skimmed and only 25 of them were found to be very relevant to the research topic.
Phase 7 (Profiling table): Finally, a profiling table was created for the 25 sources. It consisted of the full reference, the methodology adopted, relevancy to the research topic, key finding, and brief description. It also contained the country where the study was adopted, a note of how might a researcher in the field of E-diplomacy benefit from the study, and finally the limitation and the recommendation for future study. A short version of the profiling table is shown in the Finding section of this paper.
FINDINGS
As mentioned in the previous section, only 25 studies were found to be useful and relevant to the topic of e-diplomacy. These studies are classified into groups of relevancy, countries where the study was conducted and methodology adopted. More details are illustrated in table 1, table 2, and table 3 in the following three subsections.
Categories of publication
Fig. 2 and Table 1 shows that out of 25 resources there are 12 studies focused on E-diplomacy that includes effects of ICT, benefits, risks, theories, major areas of diplomacy that ICT has contributed too, common areas where digital diplomacy is particularly effective as a foreign ministry resources, tools of e-diplomacy and many others. Moreover, 9 publications have more focus on social media as a tool of public diplomacy. The last four studies did not have direct focus on e-diplomacy, however, it outlined some aspect of it such as smart power, soft power, how IT development puts diplomats under constant pressure (Petrosyan, 2001) and assessing some e-diplomacy cases (Khatib, 2012). More about the contents of each publication is presented in the profiling table, table 4.
Fig. 2, number of Categories of publication
Category # References
Direct Focus on E-diplomacy 12 Grech, 2006 – Radunovie, 2010- Permyakova 2014- Batora, 2008- Hanson 2012 – Vanc, 2012- Nweke, 2012- Copeland, 2009 – Shultz- Fong, 2010 – Abbasov, 2007 – Digital strategy, 2012
More focus on social media and public diplomacy 9 Huxley, 2014- Aldiplomacy, 2013- Mediabadger, 2014 – Hall, 2012 – Hayden, 2012- – Grincheva – Cull, 2013 – Wichowski 2013 – Zhong, 2013
No Direct Focus 4 Petrosyan, 2001- Hallams, 2010 – Chen, 2012 – Khatib, 2012
Table 1, categories of publication
Countries or regions where the studies were conducted
It can be noticed from Fig. 3 and table 2 that nine studies were conducted in Europe, eight in North America, three in the Far East, only one in India, Qatar (Middle East), and Caucasian region.
Fig. 3, number of studies per region
Country or Region where the study was conducted # Continent References
Malta 2 Europe Grech, 2006 – Radunovie, 2010
UK 2 Europe Digital strategy, 2012, Grincheva
Russia 1 Europe Permyakova 2014
Slovak 1 Europe Batora, 2008
Norway 1 Europe Batora, 2008
Finland 1 Europe Huxley, 2014
Australia 1 Australia Hanson 2012 – Abbasov, 2007
Canada 2 North America Batora, 2008 – Copeland, 2009
USA 6 North America Vanc, 2012 – Abbasov, 2007 – Hayden, 2012- Cull, 2013 – Chen, 2012- Khatib, 2012
Nigeria 1 Africa Nweke, 2012
Caucasian 1 Caucasian Petrosyan, 2001
Singapore 1 Asia (far east) Fong, 2010
Qatar 1 Asia (middle east) Aldiplomacy, 2013
India 1 Asia Hall, 2012
China 2 Asia (far east) Chen, 2012 – Zhong, 2013
General 3 Shultz- Mediabadger, 2014 – Wichowski 2013
Table 2, Countries or regions where the studies were conducted
METHODOLOGY ADOPTED
Booth, et al believed that research designs are based on the inquiry within the qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods offering specific directions for using research designs in an effective manner. Cresswell stated that the quantitative design includes true experiments along with applied behavioural analysis and single subject experiments. Non-experimental quantitative research is based on casual comparative research, when two or more groups are compared basing on the analysis of the dependent and independent variables. Qualitative design involves narrative research based on the illustrative studies of certain events and phenomena. Phenomenological design is also a preferred design of inquiry where lived experiences of people are analysed. Some types of the qualitative methods are case study, interview, collection data, observation, and systematic literature.
Table 3 below showed that none of the studies found involved surveying or any other kind of quantitative method. Sixteen publications used case studies to support their theoretical contents. Five studies involved interviewing people. One study was based on collecting data and observation. Finally, eleven studies reflected literature review.
Methodology # References
Case study 16 Permyakova 2014- Batora, 2008- Hanson 2012 – Vanc, 2012- Nweke, 2012- Copeland, 2009- Petrosyan, 2001 – Fong, 2010 – Aldiplomacy, 2013- Abbasov, 2007 – Chen, 2012- Hall, 2012- Wichowski 2013 – Zhong, 2013 – Hallams, 2010 – Khatib, 2012
Survey 0 None
Interview 5 Batora, 2008 – Huxley, 2014 – Abbasov, 2007 – Hayden, 2012 – Zhong, 2013
Collecting Data 1 Mediabadger, 2014
Observation 1 Shultz
Systematic literature 11 Grech, 2006 – Radunovie, 2010 – Permyakova 2014- Batora, 2008- Hanson 2012- Nweke, 2012- Copeland, 2009- Shultz- Petrosyan, 2001 – Fong, 2010 – Abbasov, 2007
others 2 Digital strategy, 2012, Grincheva
Table 3, Methodology adopted
Profiling table: Key findings, short brief, limitation and recommendationAs mentioned previously, the profiling table is constructed for the researcher in the field of e-diplomacy to find a starting point and useful references they can refer to as well as exploring areas that might need further investigations and future studies.
Paper Short brief/ Usefulness to researchers/ Limitations and recommendations
Grech, 2006 The aim of this master dissertation is to illustrate the effect of ICT on diplomacy and to show some methods used in diplomacy, which substituted the old ones. The author discussed that three major areas of diplomacy in which ICT has had significant effects exited. These areas are diplomatic missions, negotiations, and learning. The author also performed a SWOT analysis on virtual diplomacy
The thesis can be expanded to a PhD by supporting the theory with evidence such as interviewing diplomats ,surveying diplomats and considering some case studies
Radunovie, 2010 The objective of this master dissertation is to show how ICT has changed the major areas of diplomacy that are :
Bilateral and multilateral relation
Consular services
Negotiation
Public diplomacy
The organization of the ministry of foreign affairs
This is a very useful master dissertation that shows the theory of contemporary diplomacy, areas of diplomacy, which ICT can improve, risks, and among others.
Permyakova 2014 The paper discussed several common areas, where digital diplomacy is particularly effective, as foreign ministry resources that are public diplomacy, information management, and consular activities.
Moreover it shows four major risks of digital diplomacy that are :
The spread of extremism and terrorism
We can’t avoid error in using e-diplomacy tools
The level of communication culture is poor
Hacking and cyber attack
Finally the paper outlines some digital diplomacy toolbox which are:
Web 2.0
Social media (twitter in general)
Internet portal for the foreign office
Digital diplomacy manual
Linked-in for promotion
Diplopeida ( A US project)
E-diplomates.com
Crowdsourcing (a modern approach to solving problems through common efforts by the participants in social network)
This article could be very beneficial to researchers as it sketches three main areas in e-diplomacy that are areas of uses, risks, and tools. Once can use that article and apply it to different case (i.e. different countries) and support his/her arguments with some empirical data from interviews and/or surveys.
Batora, 2008 Batora discussed two main questions regarding the IT effects on the organizational basis of diplomacy. First, what is the magnitude of the change? On another word, are the changes as radical and as extensive as the proponents of the IT-revolution in diplomacy claim. Second, what is the direction of the change?
He also showed how three main principles of the ministry of foreign affairs organization have transformed by ICT (hierarchy, secrecy and one way communication)
Batora has discussed in his research the Effects of IT on the organizational basis of diplomacy and he supported his argument with three case studies. There is however, no theory or study showing what the key factors influence diplomats’ adoption of E-diplomacy are, or the key factors influencing E-diplomacy implementation in different countries.
Moreover, the same methods could be applied to different region of the world as Batora only considered two European countries and one north American country.
Hanson 2012 How important is the ICT and new technologies to the Australian department of foreign affairs and trade, DFAT. It could increase the efficiency and improve both internal and external communication.
The paper argues that there is a tendency to associate e-diplomacy with social networking platforms, which is a limited aspect of e-diplomacy as it could be linked to enhance external communication, internal communication, and public diplomacy.
The paper also outlined some of the Australian e-diplomacy tools that are as follow:
Internal communication tools:
And internal wiki
Deskipedia
Meeting tools
Remote access
Communities and internal blogs
Staffing profiles (LinkedIn)
External communication
Cross government and intra government wikis and websites
Cloud computing
Diaspora platform
Public diplomacy
Social media
Blog and Bloggers
Unlike many papers, this study did not just illustrate social media effects, but also outlined all the ICT tools, which can be used to contribute to diplomacy in Australia and comparing them to different countries.
The study could be expanded by comparing the results to other countries and maybe by applying qualitative methods, such as interviews, to get empirical evidences that support the theory.
Vanc, 2012 The paper shows a great example of how the US department of state (DoS) is applying the tools of e-diplomacy. Diplopia, the state diplomacy Wiki, which is a current system for knowledge sharing at the DoS, is examined.
A similar study can be performed to assess other e-diplomacy tools within or outside the US.
Nweke, 2012 The concept of digital diplomacy is explained by some people in terms of Actor-Network Theory or ANT (Nweke). This theory represents the relationship between “actor” and “actant,” actors are all non-human elements i.e. computers, texts, hybrids etc. Meanwhile the human element is referred to as actant. A theoretical framework includes analysis and linkage of ATN to international relation is reviewed.
The ATN is used if the is paper to show the interrelatedness in access and feedback associated in foreign relation.
A researcher could use this paper to relate or link ANT as a social theory to e-diplomacy
Copeland, 2009 The study outlined three areas that have been transformed by ICT revolution which are the practice of diplomacy, the management of the foreign ministry and the nature of foreign service. Three questions are addressed as well that are
Where are all of these going?
What it may mean for practitioners?
How Canada is responding to that?
The author also outlined some of the Canadian E-diplomacy constructive lessons and experience.
Finally he shed the light on some obstacles and constrains
The Canadian experience in e-diplomacy could be compared to different countries and can be supported by interviews and/or surveys.
Shultz The author of this article is completely against the idea of IT replacing the functions of diplomats and he discussed 9 important functions of diplomats that cannot be replaced by information technology.
A researcher might use this article to look at the negative side of e-diplomacy, compare it with the advantages, and then create a compromised framework or an ideal model for e-diplomacy or digital strategy.
Limitation:
There are no references.
The article was written basing on the author’s experience in diplomacy.
The article could be supported by some empirical evidences
Petrosyan, 2001 IT development puts diplomats under constant pressure of effectiveness and speed. It lays down new rules of international relations. It requires skills and abilities to deal with that massive flow of information technology and the internet. The main question in this paper is that “how does a Caucasian diplomats work with using IT?” The Question is answered in three steps that are receiving, processing, and delivering information.
Limitation: as the study was done basing on literature review, it lacks some empirical evidence that can support the theory.
Also as the study was conducted in that region (Caucasian countries) the resources might be very limited
Huxley, 2014 The paper discussed the effect of social media on the Ministry of foreign affairs of Finland. The author was researching how actors within the MFA of Finland see the organizational changes both inside and outside the MFA. Actor network theory (ANT) was used to explain the mediatisation. Interviews were conducted to derive to empirical data.
The study is great and it could be expanded to consider cases from different countries, as it is very limited to Finland. The results are context specific and could vary when different countries are considered.
Fong, 2010 This study shows the functions of diplomats in the context of the new IT environment. It also explains how these functions are affected, either directly or adversely, by IT.
The case study (Singapore) is a great example of how ICT can be intergraded with any business. Researchers can use this example to compare it to other countries
Limitation: as the study was done based on literature review, it lacks some empirical evidence that can support the theory.
Aldiplomacy, (2013 The article illustrates how social media and ICT can be beneficial to Qatari diplomats. The only article that was found has a case study of a Middle Eastern country.
The article can be expanded to a paper or a study in many ways:
Interviewing some Qatari officials
Surveying Qatari diplomats
Comparing the results to other leading countries such as the UK and the US
Outlining the Risk and the available tools in that region of the world
Abbasov, 2007 The paper discussed the effect (major challenges and benefits) of ICT on international affairs. The conclusion is that although ICT can help states run their communication in fast and cost effective ways, it could be vulnerable to cyber-attack.
Moreover, it examines the US experience using different programs such as the e-diplomats program (adoption)
Finally, the paper discusses the Australian DFAT digital diplomacy strategy and it showed that it declined in lately.
Mediabadger, 2014 An online article that outlines a country-to-country analysis statistics of digital diplomacy uses through social media. For example, it shows 72% of online adults visit Facebook at least once a month.
It could be very beneficial and useful for researchers who are seeking secondary data information about different social media platform used in many countries.
Digital strategy, 2012 This strategy conducted by the FCO covers the implication of digital for both the UK’s diplomatic work as well as the digital services to the British public abroad.
Researcher in E-diplomacy could benefit from the UK example of launching such strategy.
Chen, 2012 The study begins with a general literature on soft power, smart power and public diplomacy as well as the way China incorporates these tools into its governance. The attention is focused on the Chinese citizens’ online participation, which created state-society relations. To support the theory a case study named “anti-Carrefour incident” is examined to show how the Chinese people are using the online tools and smart power to influence the s