Plebeian Populism: A Republican Ethos?

• In Event: Poster Session: Foundations of Political Theory I

Abstract

In the midst of the republican revival in political theory, a renewed focus has also been given to the plebeian style of politics exemplified by Machiavelli’s description of Florence in his Discourses on Livy. Perhaps the most prominent example of the contemporary revival of this approach, John McCormick argues for the expansion of democracy in order to empower the masses and better ensure accountability of political elites. Similarly, Camila Vergara has suggested that this plebeian style of politics is a republican symptom of democracy in which the people-as-plebs are reconstructed through an awareness that they have become second-class citizens in their own state. In this paper, I argue that this plebeian populism is not merely a republican symptom of democracy, but that plebeian antagonism is the very ethos of republicanism through the establishment of a participatory politics oriented toward increasing the boundaries of inclusion for political actors. I argue that plebeian populism exists even within the heart of the neo-Roman republican view of Philip Pettit, one of the most prominent neo-Roman republican thinkers. In his work, Pettit argues for the necessity of an invigilated citizenry, yet provides little guidance on how this citizenry may come to be. I therefore argue that plebeian populism provides the sort of practical politics that can teach citizens to stand vigil against the encroachment of domination by both the state social actors, agents and structures alike. Thus, plebeian populism is a prerequisite to the kind of republicanism that Pettit and others exemplify, requiring the masses to be instantiated as political agents in their own right. As a republican ethos, plebeian populism is a necessary prerequisite for political actors who can act as safeguards against those forces that would do harm to the public good and the ability of individuals to pursue their chosen ends. At its core, plebeian populism is an antagonistic force that teaches individuals to assert themselves as political actors, thereby expanding the boundaries of those who are considered rightful participants in democracy. In our times, this plebeian populism may become a fruitful mechanism for increasing political participation of those previously marginalized by opening politics to people who have engaged in the experience of feeling as second-class citizens in the state that is putatively their own.

Author

• Grant Sharratt, The Ohio State University