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DC Field | Value | Language |
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dc.contributor.advisor | Enns, Diane | - |
dc.contributor.author | Marijanovic, Daniel | - |
dc.date.accessioned | 2016-09-27T14:21:25Z | - |
dc.date.available | 2016-09-27T14:21:25Z | - |
dc.date.issued | 2016 | - |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11375/20555 | - |
dc.description.abstract | The objective of this thesis is to show that conceptualizing democracy in terms of "agonism" best addresses the ills of post-democracy. I characterize post-democracy as a democratic order that has all the trappings of democracy, including multi-party elections, but which has been enmeshed in a particular discourse or discourses that have become hegemonic. This has the effect of effacing real political difference as though various political actors in a democratic order might be different in word and name, they converge on major policy points. To show agonistic democracy as the best conception, I compare and contrast it to deliberative democracy. Briefly, deliberative democracy emphasizes rational argument and reaching consensus, whereas agonistic democracy valorizes fierce political conflict between competing hegemonic projects. I argue that an emphasis on consensus does not address the specific nature of the post-democratic age, while a valorization of fierce conflict ensures the facilitation of real political difference requisite for a vibrant democratic politics. Focusing on Chantal Mouffe's conception of agonistic democracy, I identify some limitations which I attempt to overcome, namely her insistence on a form of consensus by which fierce political conflict should be bounded in order to stabilize democratic confrontations. I argue that it is possible to envision agonistic democracy in a purely procedural way, without any such consensus. Recognizing post-democracy to be a worrying reality in contemporary democratic societies, and the growing dissatisfaction with this situation, I believe democracy requires serious re-examination. This thesis does exactly that. | en_US |
dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
dc.subject | Philosophy Political Theory | en_US |
dc.title | A Defence of Agonistic Democracy in a Post-Democratic Age | en_US |
dc.type | Thesis | en_US |
dc.contributor.department | Philosophy | en_US |
dc.description.degreetype | Thesis | en_US |
dc.description.degree | Master of Arts (MA) | en_US |
Appears in Collections: | Open Access Dissertations and Theses |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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Marijanovic_Daniel_2016September_Philosophy.pdf | 1.3 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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