TOLERANCE AND DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY
TOLERANCE AND DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY

Summary/Abstract: Drawing upon the concepts of morality envisaged by J. Rawls and J. Habermas, the papercomments on the principles of a just society seen through the lens of reasonablepluralism, tolerance, deliberative democracy and consensus. As people became moralduring the process of discussion and agreement (Habermas), deliberation is tremendouslyimportant in a democratic society in which citizens should cooperate/discuss in order toestablish together the principles of justice, while any disagreement should be integratedinto a space of tolerance. Habermas views discourse in relation with rationality andmakes a clear-cut distinction between the discourse that aims at a common understandingand harmonization and the discourse in which participants try to achieve their individualgoals. People come together in a society through the use of a common language and theyunderstand the meaning of a sentence when they know under which conditions it is true(situatedness – which is also important in understanding language and its relation to the society). Stability and legitimacy are elements of an effective society where institutionsand norms are legitimate if the citizens would freely consent to them. In terms of consent,it is essential to differentiate between compromise and consensus because the former ispossible only if the people are not equal. Conversely, Habermas’ version of the consenttheory is the one in which legal authority has its roots in the process of communication,whereas Rawls appeals to the fundamental moral powers of the citizens.

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