修辞与民主:亚里士多德论政治修辞

Rhetoric and Democracy : Aristotle on Political Rhetoric

当代审议民主理论家认为亚里士多德的"审议修辞"模式并不符合今日民主政治的精神。然而,因为审议民主过于强调平等参与、理性对话等特质,在实践上,几乎仅能以"小众集会"的方式进行,与今日大众民主反而有很大差距。亚氏提供的政治修辞模式,则是大众民主中政治实然面的重要一环,不容忽视。此外,若让政治修辞教育成为公民教育的一环,除了培养更多的政治精英,能以适当且具说服力的言说方式,争取民众的认同,让民众可以做出较佳的判断;同时也可以增进民众对于政治人物言论的了解,不易被煽动或欺骗,有助于民主政治的稳定发展与巩固深化。

While contemporary political theorists trace the origin of deliberative democracy , they usually point out Aristotle.However , they also indicate immediately that Aristotle ’ s ideas of deliberative speech or rhetoric contradict today ’ s democracy.But , I do think Aristotle ’ s Art of Rhetoric could work well in contemporary mass democracy , and offers some better and different views from deliberative democracy.My argument of the essay is structured as follows : first , I outline Aristotle ’ s art of rhetoric through the context of Plato ’ s and sophists ’ contending understandings of rhetoric.Secondly , I focus on the relation between Aristotle ’ s Rhetoric and other related fields : Dialectics , Ethics , and Politics.At the same time , I try to compare and contrast Aristotle ’ s Rhetoric with deliberative democracy.Thirdly , I offer two levels of responses to answer the question of whether rhetoric fits democracy.Finally , I conclude that studying Aristotle ’ s Rhetoric today continues to offers us a practical and desirable model to understand a democratic re-gime.In order to make this mode perform well , I suggest that political rhetoric should be included as a part of civic education.On the one hand , we hope more persuasive political elites will be encouraged and their persuasion could engage the citizen ’ s better judgment. On the other hand , we also hope to educate more good citizens able to analyze and understand speeches of politicians.They can make a better judgment or at least not to be manipulated by demagogues.