Failed ambitions of total philosophical dominance breed cynicism that denies political reason exists

Evidence

It is very important that philosophers recognize this limitation on what they may hope to achieve. If a philosopher comes to the business of political conversation with the ambition of providing the political philosophy to end political philosophies—the philosophical voice to drown out all other voices—then they are bound to be disillusioned. And such disillusion can breed an attitude of despair and scepticism towards the possibilities of conversation in general. It can lead theorists to imagine, as so many contemporaries like to imagine, that there is no real conversation in politics, only the play of naked power: that political argument and exchange never amounts to anything more than the ceremonial waving of flags. — Philip Pettit, Republicanism, 57

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Totalitarian elites’ moral cynicism rests on belief in omnipotence; Philosophy’s highest concepts fail precisely through their claim to totality — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 2540; Political liberalism systematically denies power, antagonism, and undecidability in human relations. — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 135

Broader Connections

• Totalitarian elites’ moral cynicism rests on belief in omnipotence #corroborates (0.85)
• Philosophy’s highest concepts fail precisely through their claim to totality #corroborates (0.80) — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 2540