Political liberalism systematically denies power, antagonism, and undecidability in human relations.

Evidence

Completely missing from such an approach is ‘the political’ in its dimension of power, antagonism and relationships of forces. What ‘political liberalism’ is at pains to eliminate is the element of ‘undecidability’ which is present in human relations. It offers us a picture of the well-ordered society as one from which - through rational agreement on justice - antagonism, violence, power and repression have disappeared. — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 135

Categorization

• QUESTION: This frames the reader’s core test: can any pluralist ‘we’ acknowledge undecidability without collapsing into permanent enmity?
• DEFINE: Introduces ‘undecidability’ as a distinguishing mark of the political that liberal rationalism cannot absorb.
• XREF: connects to: Liberalism is not actually impartial in theory or practice — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice:…, 357; Privatism and fact-fetishism both deny politics’ dialogic nature. — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 944; Orthodox liberalism denies group difference by constructing all persons as interchangeable rights-bearing citizens — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 880 (+8 more)

Broader Connections

• Liberal neutrality masks power by presenting exclusion as reason’s product #exemplifies (0.88) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 135
• No political consensus could exist free of exclusion #expands (0.86) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 139
• No politically neutral premises exist from which liberal democracy can be justified to all #expands (0.85) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 300
• Liberal-democratic institutions cannot be given a context-independent rational foundation #exemplifies (0.82) — Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, 297
• Privatism and fact-fetishism both deny politics’ dialogic nature. #corroborates (0.80) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 944
• Liberalism is not actually impartial in theory or practice #corroborates (0.78) — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice, 357
• Failed ambitions of total philosophical dominance breed cynicism that denies political reason exists #expands (0.75) — Philip Pettit, Republicanism, 57
• Liberalism means the deliberate self-limitation of governmental reason #complicates (0.74) — Michel Foucault, The Birth of Biopolitics, 262
• Orthodox liberalism denies group difference by constructing all persons as interchangeable rights-bearing citizens #expands (0.72) — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 880
• The liberal model cannot explain simultaneous media independence and structural integration with power. #qualifies (0.72)
• Discourse exceeds ideology by refusing the true-false distinction about facts #corroborates (0.72)