An Evaluation on Chantal Mouffe's Radical Democratic Approach

Year 2014, Volume: 1 Issue: 2, 115 - 136, 21.08.2014

Mehmet Kanatlı

Abstract

In recent decades, one cannot have failed to notice the spread of the Western Liberal Democracy throughout the world. Unlike some liberal scholars such as Fukuyama who claims that after the collapse of the Berlin Wall liberalism, in a general sense, and liberal democracies, in a narrow sense, won their victory all over the world, many critics from different intellectual terrains argue that liberalism and its institutions are in difficulty to grasp today’s political nature and similarly to cope with the political crises of pluralist societies in the age of XXIst century.This article examines Chantal Mouffe’s Radical Democratic Project aim of which is to criticize liberalism, in a broad sense, and liberal democracy, in a narrow sense, by referring critics of Liberal Democracies from different intellectual terrains. Since Mouffe bases her project on criticizing Liberalism/Liberal Democracy and Deliberative Democracy, the crisis of Liberalism/Liberal Democracy and flaws of Deliberative Model from Mouffeian perspective is pointed out firstly and then the main themes and flaws of Mouffe’s Radical Democratic Project is argued.

Keywords

Radical Democracy, Antagonizm, Agonism, Multi-Partite Subject, Radical Democratic Citizenship, Agonistic Democracy, Ethic-Politic Principles, Chain of Equivalance.

Chantal Mouffe’un Radikal Demokrasi Projesi Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme

Abstract

XX. yüzyılın sonunda Batı kaynaklı Liberal Demokrasinin dünya genelinde yaygınlaşmaya başladığını görmekteyiz. Fukuyama’nın, Berlin Duvarının yıkılmasının ardından genel olarak liberalizmin özelde ise Liberal Demokrasinin dünyada zaferini ilan edeceği öngörüsünün aksine, çeşitli entelektüel çevreler Liberal Demokrasi ve kurumlarının XXI. yüzyılın çoğulcu toplumunun içinde bulunduğu krizle baş edebilmesinin zor olacağını ileri sürmektedirler. Bu yazıda genel olarak farklı çevrelerden Liberal Demokrasi eleştirisi yapanlara değinmekle beraber özel olarak Chantal Mouffe’un perspektifinden liberalizm/Liberal Demokrasi krizi ve ona alternatif olarak getirdiği Radikal Demokrasi anlayışı ortaya konmaya çalışılacaktır. Mouffe, projesini Liberal Demokrasiye yönetilen eleştiriler, Liberal Demokrasi ve Müzakereci Demokrasi eleştirisi üzerinden yürüttüğünden çalışma öncelikle Mouffe’un Liberalizme ve Liberal Demokrasi alternatifi olarak öne sürülen Müzekareci Modele yaptığı eleştirileir ve sonrasında da bu eleştiriler üzerinden geliştirdiği Radikal Demokrasi Projesini ve bu projenin eksikliklerini kapsamaktadır.

Keywords

Radikal Demokrasi, Antagonizma, Agonizm, Çok-Parçalı Özne, Radikal Demokratik Yurttaşlık, Agonistik Demokrasi, Etik-Politik Prensipler, Eş Değerlik Zinciri

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