The politics of sincerity
Subtitle: Plato, frank speech and democratic judgment
By: Elizabeth Markovits.
Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press
Published: 2008
Place of publication: University Park
Language: eng
Number of pages: 234
ISBN-13: 9780271033396
Subjects: Communication in politics -- United States; Rhetoric -- Political aspects -- United States; Honesty -- Political aspects -- United States; United States -- Politics and government -- 2001-
Description: "Elizabeth Markovits argues that the search for sincerity in the public arena actually constitutes a dangerous distraction from more important concerns, including factual truth and the ethical import of political statements." "Her argument takes her back to an examination of the Greek notion of parrhesia (frank speech), and she draws from her study of the Platonic dialogues a nuanced understanding of this ancient analogue of "straight talk." She shows Plato to have an appreciation for rhetoric rather than a desire to purge it from public life, providing insights into the ways it can contribute to a fruitful form of deliberative democracy today."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: The trouble with being earnest; title: Midwiving Socrates; title: Socratic irony and the art of politics; title: Citizen judgment and myth in the republic; title: Beyond sincerity : truth, trust, and judgment in democratic life.