A ‘Rashomon’ Story
Considering the role of cognitive frameworks in international relations, this chapter uses the so-called ‘Rashomon effect’ as a heuristic device, showing how different views and accounts of effective multilateralism and global governance can coexist as contested discourses and practices, and how they shape expectations, roles, and practices of the actors and policies involved. The chapter presents Latin American perspectives of multilateralism and global governance, analysing its narrative and discursive logics. In a marked contrast with the US ‘hegemonic’ and the EU ‘normative’ approaches, Latin American views respond to the ‘defensive’ and/or ‘revisionist’ approaches, narratives, and discourses of the Global South, with specific regionalist and nationalist features grounded in its particular historical background and political culture. The chapter also examines how these views and narratives are challenged by deep changes in power structures in the international system, demanding a common framework.