Family Dramas: Politics, Diplomacy, and Governance in the WTO

Abstract

In his account of the impact of family relations on personal development popular psychologist Oliver James offers a scenario of inter-family relations that provides a useful metaphor which helps us think about the kinds of trade politics, the diplomatic styles and behavioural patterns, and system of governance that the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) before it, has given rise to. James argues that,

Families are similar to a theatrical drama. Like fictional characters, we are each assigned a scripted role, tightly directed in its performance, clothed in psychological costumes and required to sing and dance to our family tune. This is proven whenever there is a family gathering — at Christmas, for example. From the moment we gather on Christmas Eve or the day itself, our parents and siblings demand that we enact our appointed role. Never mind that we may have long since ceased to be the clever one … the attention seeker or the moaner, our family treats us just as they always did and within minutes of walking through the door we are back in the nursery. The achievements and independence of adulthood are swept away and we find ourselves performing a role that we thought was long obsolete. (James, 2002: 32)