Knowing Democracy - A Pragmatist Account of the Epistemic Dimension in Democratic Politics

Michael Räber's book Knowing Democracy explores the question of how democracies can trust the political judgments of ordinary people. He argues that a democratic theory of political judgments based on John Dewey's pragmatism can overcome the shortcomings of both epistemic and aesthetic paradigms. Räber proposes a neo-Deweyan conception of political judgment that combines rationalist and aesthetic elements in a way that goes beyond a mere epistemic or aesthetic conception. The justification for democracies' trust in ordinary peoples political judgments rests in an egalitarian conception of democratic inquiry that blends the epistemic and aesthetic aspects of the making of political judgments.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 211 pages
Publication date: 08 October 2021
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

In his book, Knowing Democracy, Michael Räber explores the question of how democracies can trust the political judgments of ordinary people. This question is situated between two dominant paradigms in thinking about the reflective qualities of democratic life: recent epistemic theories of democracy, which assume that political participation promotes truth, and theories of political judgment that are influenced by Hannah Arendt's aesthetic conception of political judgment. By focusing on the concept of political judgment in democracies, Räber argues that a democratic theory of political judgments based on John Dewey's pragmatism can overcome the shortcomings of both these paradigms. While epistemic theories are overly rationalistic and Arendtian theories are overly aesthetic, the neo-Deweyan conception of political judgment proposed in this book offers a third path that combines the rationalist and aesthetic elements of political conduct in a way that goes beyond a merely epistemic or merely aesthetic conception of political judgment in democracy.

Räber's justification for democracies' trust in ordinary people's political judgments rests on an egalitarian conception of democratic inquiry that blends the epistemic and the aesthetic aspects of the making of political judgments. He argues that an egalitarian conception of democratic inquiry ensures that all citizens have an equal opportunity to participate in the political process and to contribute their perspectives and ideas. This conception also recognizes the importance of aesthetic experiences and emotions in shaping political judgments, as well as the role of tradition and history in shaping political beliefs and values.

The book contributes to the current debates in political epistemology and aesthetics and politics, both of which ask about the appropriate reflective and experiential circumstances of democratic politics. It brings together debates on epistemic democracy, which emphasizes the importance of truth and knowledge in democratic decision-making, and ae.

Weight: 355g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030532604
Edition number: 1st ed. 2020