Storytelling as Sun, Argument as Wind

• In Event: Aesthetics, Storytelling, and Reason, and Justice in Contemporary Political Thought

Abstract

In this paper, I consider storytelling as a subtle and peculiarly effective remedy for affective polarization. To do so, I adapt the following concepts from consummate storytellers: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s “danger of a single story” and David Whyte’s “language against which you have no defenses”. I examine what the application of each concept might offer to political discourse and to the recognition/improvement of the citizen relationship. Finally, I argue that citizens (particularly those of diverse liberal democracies such as the United States) have an obligation to tell their stories to, and listen to the stories of, their compatriots.

Author

• Ruth Boitel, UNLV