Rethinking democracy and rule of law from the perspective of rhetoric

• Author: YANG Bei
• Pages: 471-485

FRONTIERS OF LAW IN CHINA

VOL. 11 SEPTEMBER 2016 NO. 3

DOI 10.3868/s050-005-016-0028-1

FOCUS TWO

ROLE OF RHETORIC IN RULE OF LAW

RETHINKING DEMOCRACY AND RULE OF LAW FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF

RHETORIC

YAN G Bei *

Abstract With its revival in recent years, rhetoric has provided a special perspective

for modern people. If we take rhetoric as a framework to rethink democracy and rule of

law, we may not only grasp a new understanding of them, but also gain more knowledge

of the possible role of rhetoric in the contemporary world. We will find that rhetoric was

closely related to democracy and rule of law, and is still fully accordant with ideas of

democracy and rule of law in modern society. Moreover, rhetoric can provide

intellectual support to these concepts.

Keywords rhetoric, democracy, rule of Law, consensus

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 472

I. RELATIONSHIP AMONG RHETORIC, DEMOCRACY, AND RULE OF LAW IN HISTORY .... 472

A. Democracy in Polis ........................................................................................472

B. Judicial Supremacy in Classical Greek Rule of Law........................................ 474

C. Logocentrism and Sophists’ Relativism........................................................... 475

II. REVELATION OF RHETORIC ON DEMOCRACY ......................................................... 476

A. Effective Expression Is a Precondition for Democracy................................... 477

B. Practical Consensus Is Pivotal to Operation of Democracy........................... 478

C. Be Vigilant against the Tyranny of Democracy ..............................................480

III. REVELATION OF RHETORIC ON RULE OF LAW ....................................................... 481

A. Rule of Law Should Be Rule of Reasonableness ............................................481

B. Rule of Law Should Be Rule of Equity........................................................... 482

C. Rule of Law Should Be Rule by Restricted Power..........................................484

CONCLUSION........................................................................................................................ 485

* (󰐽󲧲) Ph.D in Law and Associate Professor, School of Law, University of International Business and

Economics, Beijing 100029, China. Contact: yangbei_1@126.com

This article is revised on basis of “The Rhetorical Appeal of Democracy and Rule of Law,” in 󰉜

(Journal of Literature, History and Philosophy) Vol. 5 in 2012, from page 160 to 168, and the revision is

sponsored by the Ministry of Education’s Research Project on 󲱳󲚛󲺣󱍙󱃛󱈆 (Reasons Given in

Chinese Court Decisions from Rhetoric Point of View) (13YJC820091).