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Impassioned Democracy: The Roles of Emotion in Deliberative Theory

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2020

MICHAEL A. NEBLO Open the ORCID record for MICHAEL A. NEBLO [Opens in a new window]
MICHAEL A. NEBLO*
Affiliation:
Ohio State University
*
Michael A. Neblo, Professor of Political Science and (by courtesy) Philosophy, Communication, and Public Policy, Ohio State University, neblo.1@osu.edu
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Abstract

In ordinary language, people often treat emotion as the opposite of reason. Deliberative democrats, however, typically use “reason” in a rather different way. They regard arbitrary power, not emotion, as the opposite of reason. Emotion, then, is not at all contrary to reason. Critics who rely on ordinary language to claim that deliberative democrats denigrate emotion are likely to misconstrue how both reason and emotion are deployed. In fact, most deliberative democrats have always assigned emotion an indispensable role in their theories. That said, emotion’s role in deliberation needs more, and more systematic, elaboration. I identify twelve distinct roles for emotion in deliberative theory and practice, clearing the way for a more fruitful research agenda on the role of emotion in democratic deliberation.

Type
Letter
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 114 , Issue 3 , August 2020 , pp. 923 - 927
Copyright
© American Political Science Association 2020

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Footnotes

I thank Jon Kingzette, Eric MacGilvray, Jane Mansbridge, William Minozzi, Leigh Jenco, and three anonymous reviewers for their generous and thoughtful feedback on earlier drafts.

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