On Populists and Demagogues

Bibliographic Data

ID6236852
AuthorsHaig Patapan (0000-0002-1076-4245, Griffith University, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume52
Issue4
Pages743-759
Publication date2019-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCanadian Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0008-4239 • E-ISSN: 1744-9324
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0008423918001099
OpenAlexW2970789373
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited44

The article seeks to understand what is specifically modern about populists, why we have difficulty in agreeing on who and what they are, and—importantly—how we can address the formidable challenge they present to contemporary democratic politics. It does so by detailing the classical conception of the demagogue and by showing how modernity, in its liberal and counter-liberal aspects, sought to solve conclusively the problem of the demagogue. It argues that modern populists face significant obstacles to their ambitions in the form of modern constitutionalism, yet are also armed with new weapons, including new concepts or “ideologies” for manipulation (such as “the people,” nation, race and class) and new rhetorical techniques (such as propaganda that exploits modern technology and mass media

Constitutionalism · Democracy · Face (sociological concept · Ideology · Liberalism · Modernity · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Populism · Rhetoric · Rhetorical question · Social science · Sociology · Theology · Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection · Law · Philosophy · Political Theology and Sovereignty · Populism, Right-Wing Movements

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access