The Democratic Paradox (Phronesis) Book

From the theory of 'deliberative democracy' to the politics of the 'third way', the present Zeitgeist -is characterized by an attempt to negate the inherently conjectural nature of democratic politics. Political thought and practice are stifled by a misconceived search for consensus and the promotion of a bland social unanimity which, as Chantal Mouffe shows, far from being the sign of progress, constitute a serious threat for democratic institutions. lndeed, in many countries this 'consensus of the centre' is providing a platform for the growth of populist right-wing parties which, by presenting themselves as the only 'anti-establishment' forces, are trying to occupy the terrain of contestation deserted by the left. Taking issue with the work of John Rawls and Jurgen Habermas on one side, and with the tenets of the third way as practised by Tony Blair and Theorized by Anthony Gladens on the other, the author brings to the fore paradoxical nature of modern liberal democracy. Against those who affirm that, with the demise of the left/right divide, antagonism has been eliminated from contemporary post-industrial societies and that an all inclusive politics has become possible, she argues that the category of the 'adversary/' plays a central role in the very dynamics of modern democracy. Drawings on work of Wittgenstein and Derrida, and engaging with the provocative of Carl Schmitt, she proposes a new understanding of democracy in of 'agonistic pluralism' which acknowledges the in-eradicabibility ofRead More