As the Cold War recedes into history, as four decades of high-blown rhetoric (brinkmanship and all that) and downright distortion ("evil empire" and all that) subside, the world appears to be entering a new era. With Gorbachev and glasnost at the helm in the Soviet Union and with Reagan's replacement—whoever that may be—on the way, a new chapter in U.S.-Soviet relations seems to be beginning. And with these developments, as Norman Graebner notes, the notion of bipolarism may be put to rest—this being "the assumption that the Soviet-American conflict is the supreme fact of international life, dwarfing all other national or regional concerns." Where once the U.S. and the Soviets dominated the global scene, other powers are coming to the fore. "As these traditional powers of Europe and Asia regain ever-larger roles in world affairs, there is no guarantee," Mr. Graebner observes, "that they will forever remain content with the present distribution of power and prestige."

Norman Graebner is well qualified to assess the successive decades of Cold War. Not only did he live through them, he has devoted a distinguished career to ascertaining their significance in history. After serving as first lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II, he received a Ph. D. in history from the University of Chicago in 1949. His many teaching posts include assistant professor to professor, Iowa State College, professor and chairman of the history department, University of Illinois at Urbana, and from 1967 until his retirement in 1986, Edward R. Stettinius professor of modern American history at the University of Virginia. His many books on foreign affairs include Empire on the Pacific, The New Isolationism, Cold War Diplomacy, The Age of Global Power, and An Uncertain Tradition: American Secretaries of State in the 20th Century.