Democratic politics transforms antagonism between enemies into agonism between adversaries

Evidence

Introducing the category of me ‘adversary’ requires complexifying the notion of antagonism and distinguishing two different forms in which it can emerge. antagonism properly speaking and agonism. Antagonism is struggle between enemies. while agonism is struggle between adversaries. We can therefore reformulate our problem by saying that envisaged from the perspective of ‘agonistic pluralism’ the aim of democratic politics is to trans· form ""tafO”irm into “gtmism. This requires providing channels through which collective passions will be given ways to express themselves over issues which, while allowing enough possibility for identification, will not construct the opponent as an enemy but as an adversary. — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 461

Categorization

• DEFINE: Formally distinguishes antagonism from agonism and names the transformation from one to the other as democracy’s central task.
• XREF: Speaks directly to the reader’s question: whether mobilization of collective passions without an Enemy is possible — ‘allowing enough possibility for identification’ is the crux. — connects to: Democratic institutions may constrain raw state coercion against opposition — Charles Tilly, Regimes and Repertoires, 72; Adversarial conflict among legitimate positions is democracy’s condition, not its danger — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 338; Antagonism can manifest as agonism between friendly enemies sharing symbolic space — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 67 (+7 more)

Broader Connections

• Democracy’s task is converting antagonism into agonism, not erasing it #corroborates (0.98) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 584
• Democratic negotiation is agonistic struggle without final resolution #expands (0.92)
• Denying antagonism’s ineradicability is the real threat to democracy #corroborates (0.85) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 102
• Effective democracy generates antagonism that can destroy cooperatives if not accommodated. #complicates (0.78) — Adrian Josef Amon, Organizing the study of degeneration…, 71
• Characterizing opponents as criminal enemies is a step toward regime delegitimation #complicates (0.74) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 210
• Societal antagonism toward a party can equip it for later political competition #qualifies (0.72) — Anna M. Grzymala-Busse, Redeeming The Communist Past, 140