Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants (ebook)

Argumento de Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants (ebook)

In recent years, most political theorists have agreed that shame shouldn't play any role in democratic politics because it threatens the mutual respect necessary for participation and deliberation. But Christina Tarnopolsky argues that not every kind of shame hurts democracy. In fact, she makes a powerful case that there is a form of shame essential to any critical, moderate, and self-reflexive democratic practice.

Through a careful study of Plato's Gorgias, Tarnopolsky shows that contemporary conceptions of shame are far too narrow. For Plato, three kinds of shame and shaming practices were possible in democracies, and only one of these is similar to the form condemned by contemporary thinkers. Following Plato, Tarnopolsky develops an account of a different kind of shame, which she calls "respectful shame." This practice involves the painful but beneficial shaming of one's fellow citizens as part of the ongoing process of collective deliberation. And, as Tarnopolsky argues, this type of shame is just as important to contemporary democracy as it was to its ancient form.

Tarnopolsky also challenges the view that the Gorgias inaugurates the problematic oppositions between emotion and reason, and rhetoric and philosophy. Instead, she shows that, for Plato, rationality and emotion belong together, and she argues that political science and democratic theory are impoverished when they relegate the study of emotions such as shame to other disciplines.

"This is a book of manifold virtues; ambitious and beautifully written, it makes a signal and original contribution to our understanding of Socratic method, the Gorgias, and the politics of shame. Marvelously rich, the book breaks new ground in making shame central to our reading of Plato's dialogues, and equally new ground in the complexity and subtlety of its understanding of shame itself."--Melissa Lane, Princeton University

"Tarnopolsky's interpretation of Plato's Gorgias is original, bold, and convincing. Her cross-disciplinary exploration of shame in its ancient and modern contexts is psychologically, philosophically, and politically deep. This definitive account is required reading for Plato scholars and for anyone interested in contemporary democratic politics."--Jill Frank, University of South Carolina

"Tarnopolsky presents many thought-provoking and helpful interpretations of Plato's Gorgias."--James H. Nichols, Jr., Polis

"Every once in a long while a book comes along that the reader finds so worthwhile, down to the smallest detail, that she painstakingly devours every line and every section, even those with which she finds herself in disagreement, and ultimately closes the book with a sigh of disappointment when the journey is done and the book ends. Such a book is . . . Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants. . . . This book will be an excellent addition to any philosopher's library, worthy as a graduate level text on ancient philosophy, and valuable for those readers interested in nuanced studies of the effects of the emotions in human societies and in politics. Regardless of whether the reader agrees with the twists and turns of Tarnopolsky's arguments, the journey will be well worth taking."--Wendy C. Hamblet, Philosophy in Review0List of Tables ix
Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1
Contemporary Attitudes toward Shame 1
The Theoretical Debates Surrounding Shame 2
Plato's Relevance to the Contemporary Politics of Shame 6
Plato's Gorgias and the Politics of Shame 16
Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants 21

PART ONE: Plato's Gorgias and the Athenian Politics of Shame 27

CHAPTER ONE: Shame and Rhetoric in Plato's Gorgias 29
Situating Plato's Gorgias within the Platonic Corpus 35
The Dual Character of the Socratic Elenchus 38
From Gorgianic Rhetoric to Platonic Rhetoric 41

CHAPTER TWO: Shaming Gorgias, Polus, and Callicles 56
The Refutation of Gorgias 61
The Refutation of Polus 65
The Refutation of Callicles 79
The Mechanisms of Shame 84

CHAPTER THREE: Plato on Shame in Democratic Athens 89
The Canonical View of Plato's Criticisms of Athens 90
Disrupting the Canon 91
Parrhe¯sia as an Athenian Democratic Ideal 96
Parrhe¯sia and Shame 98
The Structure of Shame 100
Flattering vs. Respectful Shame 104
Plato contra Tyrannical Democrats 110

CHAPTER FOUR: Socratic vs. Platonic Shame 114
Shame and Deception in Plato's Gorgias 114
The Myth as an Illustration of the Socratic Elenchus 120
Platonic Myth vs. Socratic Elenchus 126
Gregory Vlastos on Socratic and Platonic Irony 131
Alexander Nehamas on Socratic and Platonic Irony 133
Socratic vs. Platonic Irony in Plato's Gorgias 136

PART TWO: Plato's Gorgias and the Contemporary Politics of Shame 141

CHAPTER FIVE: Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants: Plato and the Contemporary
Politics of Shame and Civility 143
The Contemporary Politics of Shame and Civility 143
Michael Warner and the Politics of Shame 145
Jean Bethke Elshtain and the Politics of Civility 147
Elshtain and Warner: Finding a Common Ground 150
The Conceptual Confusions Surrounding Shame 151
Solving the Conceptual Confusions 153
Socratic Respectful vs. Flattering Shame 160
Platonic Respectful Shame and the Search for Consensus 167

CHAPTER SIX: What's So Negative about the "Negative" Emotions? 172
Defining the "Negative" Emotions 172
Rationality and the Emotions 178
Primitive vs. Advanced Emotions 183
The Positivity of Negativity 193

Bibliography 197
Index 211