(iPoster) Aristotle and Political Polarization in a Fragmented Democratic Age

• In Event: Poster Sessions: International Security II & Normative Political Theory
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: Normative Political Theory

Abstract

Modern democratic life often treats access to information as a substitute for civic virtue, even as shared moral judgment and democratic trust continue to weaken.

This paper examines why unprecedented access to knowledge, information, and digital social connection has failed to produce stronger civic virtue or shared ideals in modern democratic life. Drawing on Aristotle’s account of civic virtue and shared moral judgment, it revisits a classical understanding of how citizens came to deliberate, judge, and act together. This paper connects this Aristotelian framework with contemporary critiques of polarization, political extremism, and dependence on social technology.

While much research on political polarization focuses on the role of institutions, social media, and individual identity, less attention is paid to the normative conditions under which civic virtue itself is formed. By challenging the assumption that more information naturally leads to greater political awareness or engagement, this paper argues that civic virtue is cultivated through the daily practice of participation and shared judgment, not passive access to knowledge or social connection. Information and technological solutions alone cannot repair democratic life without greater attention to moral formation and civic practice.

Author

• Judy Kassa, San José State University