Erving Goffman writes in "The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life," "...when an individual appears before others his actions will influence the definition of the situation which they come to have (1959: 6)." Guided by Goffman and Hannah Arendt ("The Human Condition," 1958) this paper explores the appearance and reality of Sayyid Hasan Nasrallah, Secretary-General of Hizballah. In it, I investigate how Nasrallah makes victory appear---thereby constructing it as real---through his political speeches and public appearances by presenting his own definition of the situation: a Lebanese victory. One such victory came on July 16th, 2008 with the release of Samir Quntar by the Israelis in a prisoner exchange. Through an analysis of Nasrallah's speech for the occasion, I will argue that Nasrallah was successful in presenting a new definition of the situation, one that defined both the July War in 2006 and the prisoner exchange as Hizballah-Lebanese victories. This paper, then, encompasses an investigation of Arabic political speech and the linguistic strategies used by Nasrallah, the physical appearance of Nasrallah and the released prisoners, Nasrallah's use of the stage and live broadcast, martyrs and martyrdom, and the intersection of the religion, media and (trans)nationalism. As put forward by Nasrallah, this definition of the situation would help Hizballah gain political legitimacy in Lebanon and secure wider support and subsequent victories over its political rivals and primary regional nemesis---Israel. To supplement my analysis, I will also explore reactions to the prisoner exchange and representations of Hizballah and Nasrallah in the Israeli media, as well as on the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs' channel on Youtube.com.

The continual interference by external actors in Lebanese affairs has created a political environment in Lebanon that has seemingly intertwined domestic and regional/extra-regional politics. This reality has relatively blurred the line between these political domains which often leaves one wondering if Lebanese politics are a distinct phenomenon or simply a reflection of regional/extra-regional developments. Understanding the relationship between domestic and regional/extra-regional politics in Lebanon, particularly how agreements are achieved among numerous actors, has been relatively absent from scholarship. My paper seeks to address this void in two significant ways. Firstly, the overlap between domestic and regional/extra-regional politics has not been properly dealt with by political scientists. To understand the workings of the Lebanese political milieu, the divide between these two disciplines must be bridged. Following a literature review, I will argue for a framework of analysis that eliminates this issue by focusing on the domestic, regional and extra-regional veto players in the Lebanese political milieu. The veto players approach is critical, particularly for Lebanon with its numerous and diverse political players, because it provides one with the ability to focus only on those actors who are necessary for changing the status quo of a particular issue. Secondly, I will analyze the veto players approach regarding Lebanon's foreign policy in two different eras: 1958-1964 and 2005-2010. I want to understand which actors, actions and circumstances are contributing to Lebanon's instability. Are external actors responsible for Lebanon's instability or are domestic actors taking advantage of these external actorsa Who and what is needed to eventually achieve stabilityb Does a gain in Lebanon, reflect a loss in the regionr Answers to these questions will ultimately provide an understanding as to whether Lebanon can play a role in stabilizing the region. This study suggests that the lack of intra-confessional political competition and an increase in the number of external veto players will perpetuate the current intransigence/instability of the Lebanese political system.

This paper examines the perspectives on international relations of two leading Islamist intellectuals: Sheikh Yousof al-Qaradawi and Sayyid Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah. Held in high esteem in their respective Sunni and Shiite communities, Qaradawi and Fadlallah were chosen for four main reasons. First, they have produced impressive bodies of work, offering penetrating insights into the discourse of contemporary Islamists. Second, Qaradawi and Fadlallah represent the two major denominations in Islam (Sunnite and Shiite Islam), rendering it interesting to see how their different religious backgrounds influence the substance and style of their discourse. Third, they are self-proclaimed "moderates" advocating dialog among Muslims of different denominations and beliefs and especially with the West. It is appealing to examine how this "moderate stance" (al-wasatiyya) translates itself into each author's perspective on international relations. Finally, while dwelling extensively on contemporary problems in international relations, Qaradawi and Fadlallah lean heavily on the Quran and the Hadith to support their arguments and articulate their thoughts. This study is motivated in part by a forceful urge to unpack and comprehend the complex and subtle ways in which the sacred text permeates the discourse of Islamists and to shed light on the significance of the sacred to Islamists' conceptualizations of current international realities which are often portrayed as profane. In addition to trying to uncover what each thinker posits as the underpinning principles of international relations, the paper seeks to highlight each author's views on a range of contemporary problems in international relations, namely: 1) the nature of the current international system and the role of the United States in it; 2) the relationship between the United States (and more generally the West) and the Arab and Islamic worlds; 3) Israel and the Palestinian question; 4) the prospects for Arab and Islamic unity and the obstacles that stand in the way; and 5) globalization and its implications for the Arab and Muslim worlds. The paper relies primarily on textual analysis of the substantial oeuvre produced by Qaradawi and Fadlallah over the past quarter century which includes books, verdicts (fatwas), Friday Sermons and published interviews. In order to better situate our two authors' discourses, I further examine contemporary Arabic literature on international relations as well as sample works by leftist writers from the Third World (especially Latin America), Europe and the United States who subscribe to the same counter-hegemonic discourse of Islamists and the overwhelming majority of Arab intellectuals.