Flatter the Demos? Aristotle on Democratic Preservation and Demagoguery

• In Event: The Polis Examined: Aristotle and Isocrates

Abstract

What should democracy do about the threat of demagogues? This question has become pressing both in America and around the globe. Despite a renaissance in the study of demagoguery, scholarship has been struggling to find new solutions to the age-old problem of demagogues. Answers like moderation, civic education, and institutional constraints have proven at best band-aids to the problem of demagoguery. As a new wave of demagogue scholars demand, it is time to change the way we approach demagoguery. This essay argues that Aristotle’s account of demagoguery in the Politics has more to offer us than the tired, prevailing moralistic interpretation. There is a rhetorical component to Aristotle’s usage of the term demagogue that has yet to be adequately appreciated. Aristotle is rightly understood to highlight the threat demagogues pose to democratic stability and (relatedly) the rule of law. Yet, his solution to this problem is not to excise demagoguery from democracy. In fact, he casts doubt on this as a possibility. The answer instead seems that we must beat demagogues at their own game. In order to better preserve democracy, Aristotle flatters the demos—the very thing he accuses the demagogue of doing. This insight challenges our current approach, suggesting that the best way to deal with the threat of demagoguery is to embrace and tame it rather than try to suppress or constrain it.

Author

• Sebastian Graham, Baylor University