The Language Game of Political Argumentation

What is special about political argumentation?

Political argumentation is a special language game distinguished by certain features and dynamics. Here are some of the most important aspects:

Features of political argumentation

• Publicness: Political argumentation takes place in public and concerns the community as a whole.
• Power and influence: It is often bound up with power structures and the striving for influence.
• Values and norms: Political argumentation touches on fundamental values and norms of a society.
• Complexity: Political topics are often complex and many-layered, which makes the argumentation demanding.
• Emotional involvement: Political argumentation can provoke strong emotional reactions.
• Populism and rhetoric: Politicians often use rhetorical devices to gloss over their lack of arguments and to win voters.

Different actors and contexts

• Political argumentation takes place in various contexts, such as parliaments, election campaigns, media and public debates. Different actors, including politicians, citizens, interest groups and media, contribute to the diversity of perspectives.
• Depending on context and actors, the rules and norms of argumentation can vary or be entirely absent, as in the social networks.
• Political argumentation can take place both formally (e.g. in parliaments) and informally (e.g. on social media).
• In parliament, strict rules often apply to debate, and in committees people do at times actually argue on the merits, while on social media the discussions are often more spontaneous, less structured and more emotional.

Arguments and interests

• Almost always, when arguing in politics, interests stand in the background or the foreground.
• These interests can be individual as well as collective in nature and influence how arguments are formulated and presented.
• It is important to recognize the underlying interests in order to understand the argumentation better.
• E.g. there would surely be fewer climate deniers if they were not financed by the fossil-fuel industry.
• Or, to cite a classic example: the cigarette lobby successfully sowed doubt for decades about the health risks of smoking, in order to protect its economic interests, with the most amazing arguments.

Political rhetoric and manipulation

• Political rhetoric plays a decisive role in political argumentation.
• It comprises the use of language and stylistic devices to strengthen one's own position and weaken opponents.
• Manipulative rhetoric can lead to facts being distorted or exaggerated in order to influence public opinion. (see e.g.: Charlie Kirk)

Good and bad political arguments

• Good political arguments are clear, logical and based on verifiable facts. They take various perspectives into account and foster dialogue.
• Bad political arguments, by contrast, are often emotional, unobjective or manipulative. They can be based on misinformation, prejudices or personal attacks.
• It is important to question political arguments critically and to assess the quality of the argumentation.