RSVP
Dare to Think with Arendt: On the Promise of Democratic Education in “Dark Times”
Thu Feb 27, 2025
15:30 – 17:00
PCN 2012 6445 University Blvd
Presenter: Ivan Zamotkin
Abstract: Although Hannah Arendt is increasingly referenced in discussions on democratic education, a literal (and rather honest) reading of her works – on both democracy and education – can lead to a disheartening conclusion: she will always remain an “irritating conversational partner” (Reichenbach, 2023). Nonetheless, philosophers of education, particularly in the Anglo-American tradition, have engaged with Arendt’s broader concepts of freedom and plurality to argue for education’s public role in achieving social change, either by simply ignoring or challenging her infamous strict separation between education and politics. At the same time, within the Continental tradition, where this separation is celebrated and employed to emphasize education’s autonomy, the very notion of democratic (read: political) education becomes an oxymoron. Despite these seemingly predefined trajectories, I dare to take up Arendt’s challenge to draw new constellations to think anew. To chart a different course, I propose a relatively modest step: to think about democratic education in a minor key, while still regarding it as worthy of attention. In my presentation, I will share the results of my doctoral research aimed at finding a balance between these divergent interpretations of Arendt by shifting the focus of democratic education from political action to the task of preserving the common world and its potential for renewal. In doing so, I aim to avoid reducing education to a mere instrument for political ends while taking seriously the fact that this task inherently carries political implications.