Rhetoric for a Democracy in Crisis: A Study of Political Theory

The seminar will feature a talk by Víctor Alonso-Rocafort (Complutense University of Madrid), based on his recent book Rhetoric for a Democracy in Crisis: A Study of Political Theory (2025, Palgrave). The presentation will be followed by comments from four discussants, a response by Prof. Alonso-Rocart, and a final Q&A session open to all participants.

The discussants will be:
Giovanni Damele (NOVA University Lisbon)
Giuseppe Ballacci (CEPS, UMinho)
Pedro Magalhães (UMinho)
Rob Goodman (Toronto Metropolitan University)

Abstract: This book offers a response to the contemporary crisis of democracy. Drawing on the rich rhetorical tradition, it recovers a distinct Mediterranean current—shaped by figures such as Isocrates, Quintilian, and Giambattista Vico—that provides compelling theoretical alternatives. The book argues that contemporary democracy can be significantly enriched by this legacy. It explores its connections to strands of political theory that challenged positivist political science, its resistance to forms of propaganda typical of tyrannical regimes, and its inclusive ethos grounded in a reverence for difference—resonating with Hannah Arendt’s notion of freedom of movement, both in the world and in thought.nThe rhetorical perspective developed here contributes to rethinking “the political” as envisioned by Arendt and Sheldon Wolin, in opposition to the Schmittian conception recently revived in contemporary populism. In doing so, the book highlights the potential of rhetorical thought to renew the principles of radical democracy in the face of current challenges.

Bio: Víctor Alonso-Rocafort is Associate Professor of Political Theory at the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), Spain. His research focuses on rhetoric, radical democracy, and environmental political theory.