Four Historical Perspectives on Deliberation

What is the best guarantee that deliberation will have a good outcome? Aristotle: A Wise Leader James Madison: A Well-Built System Walter Lippmann: Expert Knowledge John Dewey: Active and Informed Citizens

Aristotle (384-322 BCE) Aristotle was an influential teacher and philosopher who living Greece in the 4th century BCE. In his own time, he was the tutor of Alexander the Great, who unified much of the Mediterranean world under his rule. He wrote on a wide variety of subjects: politics, biology, physics, ethics, and rhetoric. His works were foundational to the curriculum of medieval European universities, and some exert a continuing influence.

Aristotle (384-322 BCE) Aristotle’s book on rhetoric contains a whole section on deliberation, which was one of the three genres of rhetoric he recognized. The topics of deliberation Aristotle discusses are remarkably similar to those discussed by legislatures today: finances, war and peace, trade, and laws. Aristotle observed that the ultimate goal of deliberation is happiness.

Aristotle (384-322 BCE) Ultimately, Aristotle believed that deliberation is most likely to be successful when it is presided over by a wise leader, someone with the quality that he called phronesis.

James Madison (1751-1836) One of the primary architects of the Constitution of the United States of America, Madison thought the a good political system was a more valuable thing than an individual political leader. He argued that checks and balances should be built into the political system to prevent individuals from abusing power.

James Madison (1751-1836) In Federalist 10, Madison expresses optimism that the probable multiplicity of small factions under the new constitution will prevent any one faction from taking over. In Federalist 51, he argues for the necessity of checks and balances: “If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.”

Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) Walter Lippmann was an influential American journalist and political commentator. He believed that experts should play a vital role in helping to form public opinion. He called this process “manufacturing consent.”

Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) Lippmann 1922 book, Public Opinion begins with an anecdote about a misunderstand concerning the US Navy that lead to some outlandish speeches being given on the floor of the US Senate. Lippmann argues that policy makers and the public alike are prone be more influenced by the “pictures in their heads” than by actual reality. Lippmann called the “pictures in our heads” “stereotypes.”

Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) Lippmann concluded that experts were needed to correct the stereotypes that too often guided policy makers and the public: “I argue that representative government, either in what is ordinarily called politics, or in industry, cannot be worked successfully, no matter what the basis of election, unless there is an independent, expert organization for making the unseen facts intelligible to those who have to make the decisions.”

John Dewey (1859-1952) John Dewey was an American philosopher, one of the foremost proponents of a philosophical tradition called pragmatism. Although he wrote on many topics, his work on education remains especially influential. He argued for the importance of experience, as opposed to abstract knowledge, in the educational process.

John Dewey (1859-1952) In his 1939 speech, “Creative Democracy,” Dewey argues that democratic institutions alone do not guarantee a functioning democracy. He puts his faith not in an organization of experts, but in the citizenry itself: “Democracy is a way of personal life controlled not merely by faith in human nature in general but by faith in the capacity of human beings for intelligent judgment and action if proper conditions are furnished.”

What Do You Think? Aristotle: A Wise Leader James Madison: A Well-Built System Walter Lippmann: Expert Knowledge John Dewey: Active and Informed Citizens