Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-11-2019

Publication Title

Rhetoric Society Quarterly

Volume

49

Issue Number

3

First Page

248

Last Page

263

ISSN

0277-3945

Abstract

Demagoguery is a subject of much discussion around the world in light of recent international political affairs. But since demagoguery remains a contested term, the definition invites continued deliberation as rhetoricians grapple with its usefulness, persistence, and presence in world affairs, and as they consider what, if anything, to do about it. Building from Aristotle’s famously imprecise definition of demagoguery and from contemporary definitions that locate demagoguery in culture not in a specific speaker, this essay argues that demagogic rhetoric necessarily incorporates arguments, topoi, and evidence that attack and attempt to undermine the legitimacy of democratic institutions. Specifically, demagogic rhetoric hyperextends or supercharges direct democracy by amplifying “the will of the people” to undermine the constraining functions of democratic institutions.

Comments

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Rhetoric Society Quarterly, on June 11, 2019, available online: https://www-tandfonline-com/doi/full/10.1080/02773945.2019.1610639/

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