Between the Social and the Political
The Role of the Proto-Political Sphere in Political Participation
in Democratic Theory
Author:
and
Pia Rowe
Pia Rowe
University of Canberra Pia.Rowe@canberra.edu.au
Search for other papers by Pia Rowe in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Pia Rowe in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
David Marsh
David Marsh
University of Canberra David.Marsh@canberra.edu.au
Search for other papers by David Marsh in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by David Marsh in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
All currencies in US Dollar
While Wood and Flinders’ work to broaden the scope of what counts as “politics” in political science is a needed adjustment to conventional theory, it skirts an important relationship between society, the protopolitical sphere, and arena politics. We contend, in particular, that the language of everyday people articulates tensions in society, that such tensions are particularly observable online, and that this language can constitute the beginning of political action. Language can be protopolitical and should, therefore, be included in the authors’ revised theory of what counts as political participation.