The 52nd session of the Adventus Amicorum series hosted by the Institute of Area Studies, Peking University (PKUIAS), was held on May 22, 2025, under the theme “Politics and Geopolitics of Emotions in Contemporary International Relations.” The lecture featured Jean-Marc Coicaud, a distinguished professor of Law and Global Affairs at Rutgers University and the director of the office of the United Nations University (UNU) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City from 2003 to 2011. Prof. Coicaud has published 17 books and over 100 chapters and articles in the fields of legal and political theory, international law, international relations, and comparative politics. The lecture was chaired by Zhang Yongle, associate professor at the Law School and deputy director of PKUIAS. The attending guests included Duan Demin, associate professor at the School of Government and deputy director of the Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences; Kong Tao, senior research fellow at the Institute of Digital Finance, Peking University; Chen Yifeng, associate professor at the Law School; Cao Yin, associate professor at the Department of History; Lü Xiaoyu, assistant professor at the School of International Studies; Yang Meng, assistant professor at the School of Foreign Languages; and Chen Xiaohang, assistant professor at the Law School.

Coicaud’s recent research has focused on themes such as the nature and evolution of the international system. His lecture highlighted the nature of emotions and passions in international life and their impact mechanisms on the international order (international law). Coicaud first asked why emotions, violence, and conflict were becoming increasingly important in contemporary context of international relations. He pointed out that negative emotions (hatred, resentment, jealousy, paranoia, lack of respect) have destructive negative impacts on social life and interpersonal relationships, and at the political level, they may be transformed into specific manifestations, such as racism and xenophobia. Coicaud elaborated on four questions: How do negative emotions and passions form in social groups? How do they shape the domestic and international social landscape? How should positive emotions be cultivated, and how is emotional regulation reflected in political systems? Coicaud believes that political and legal regime are closely related to values and passions. Any kind of political and legal regime expresses and projects a set or a regime of emotions.

    Furthermore, Coicaud asked how we make sure that positive emotions and passions prevail in the structuration of a political and legal regime. Taking revolution as an example, he pointed out that when the public launches a revolution, they are dissatisfied with the rule of the authorities and full of anger, frustration, and resentment, which may lead the new political system to also fall into these negative values, but at the same time, it also has positive emotions and passions, in that the public is expecting to build a better world.

Coicaud takes the connection between emotions, passions, and values as an entry point to understand the increasingly tense situation in the world today. First, what is the impact of emotions and passions, and their associated values, on today’s crisis of politics in Western democracy? A significant segment of the population feels that they have been left behind by the modalities of globalization in the West, and they are supporting populism. In the past 50 years, while the democratic system of the US has brought economic growth, it has also generated more frustration, anger, and populism. Second, how does the personality of leaders, including their emotional personality, influence the policies of the country they lead, domestically and internationally? Taking US President Trump as an example, Coicaud believes that his narcissism requires constant praise, which is a manifestation of insecurity. Trump’s policies, seemingly based on idealism or national interests, are actually more related to his personal psychology. Third, how does the emotional dimension affect international relations? More precisely, are today’s tensions and conflicts simply conflicts of geopolitical interests or are they based on regimes of emotions (resentment, fear, negative memories, and other factors)? For example, Germany’s unconditional support for Israel is largely related to historical memories and guilt of the Holocaust. Coicaud cited the teachings of “Master” in Kung Fu Panda to point out that the way to live in peace with others is to first find one’s own inner peace.

Coicaud believes that emotions need to be connected with cognition, and there is no cold cognition as traditional philosophy believes. Emotions are often more passive and reactive, while passion is more active in the process of participating in the world. Moreover, emotions are always associated with values, and values and rights determine expectations. Whether expectations are realized will affect the emotions experienced. Coicaud discussed cases such as victim mentality and the worship of death ideology, and emphasized that people’s emotions are often shaped by leaders, and leadership largely affects the direction of social and political order. Positive emotions and passions such as mutual respect can promote cooperation and cultivate a sense of international solidarity in the context of international competition and cultural differences, proving that world politics guided by justice is more effective than those guided by fear and interests.

In the discussion session, Chen Xiaohang raised the issue of selecting materials for emotional analysis, and took the contradiction of Trump’s attitude toward China as an example to explore the mechanism of the influence of complex emotions on decision-making. On this basis, Lü Xiaoyu asked about the difficulty of defining performance and authenticity in the emotional expression of politicians, and whether politics can be understood as the art of emotional management. Yang Meng asked about victim mentality, arguing that the view equating criticism of Israeli policies with anti-Semitism is overly simplistic. At the methodological level, Kong Tao raised the issue of value judgment in qualitative research on emotions, including philosophical reflections such as the analysis of the legitimacy of emotional mobilization and whether positive emotions are naturally morally superior. Chen Yifeng discussed the connection between emotional regime and political style, as well as the limitations of observing modern politics from the perspective of emotional issues. Cao Yin supplemented the victim mentality case in British colonial expansion, and asked whether the Western democratic system has the defect of relying on negative emotional mobilization. Duan Demin added that rational dialogue must be based on the emotion of respect. Finally, Zhang Yongle thanked Coicaud for his sharing, and pointed out in his summary that the value of emotion has a historical dimension and requires specific time and space positioning.