Politics, speech, and the art of persuasion: Toward an Aristotelian conception of the public sphere

This paper argues that Aristotle's Rhetoric is a valuable source for contemporary theorists of the public sphere. Thus far, these scholars have failed to recognize that Aristotle's discussion of the art of rhetoric contains important elements of both rational/deliberative and agonistic models of the public sphere. Aristotle recognizes that persuasive political speech is reasonable, passionate, and reflective of the character of the speaker. After presenting a reconstruction of Aristotle's arguments concerning (1) the content of persuasive public speech and (2) its role in political deliberation, I discuss areas of agreement and disagreement between Aristotle and the two most influential representatives of rational/deliberative and agonistic models of the public sphere: Jurgen Habermas and Hannah Arendt. The paper's conclusion refers to the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.'s use of rhetorical speech in order to illustrate the advantages of Aristotelian persuasion over rational/deliberative and agonistic forms of public speech.