A Grammar of Democracy: Form, Literature, and Philosophy in Classical Greece

In the fifth and fourth centuries BCE, the form of antilogy—the uninterrupted delivery of opposed speeches before an audience—traversed a wide range of cultural fields in the Greek public sphere. From the political platform of the assembly and lawcourts to the theatrical stage of dramatic festivals to the intellectual performances of Socrates and the sophists, the antilogic form created a shared conceptual grammar that tied together democracy, literature, and philosophy. Drawing from case studies including Euripides’ Orestes, Greek voting practices, and Plato’s dialogues, my talk will trace the practice of antilogy as it travels across multiple fields. I will argue that antilogy constituted the most pervasive form of democratic discourse in classical Greece, while the form of philosophical dialogue emerged as a direct response to and reversal of antilogic communication. Attending to the grammar of antilogy, then, might help us redraw current disciplinary boundaries and reimagine the intellectual map of classical Greece.

Reception to follow.