The Power of Deliberation

Abstract

Arguing about matters of public policy is ubiquitous in democracies. The ability to resolve conflicts through peaceful contestation is a measure of any well-ordered society. Arguing is almost as ubiquitous in international affairs, yet it is not viewed as an important element of world order. This book challenges the assumption that arguing is mere lip service with no real impact on the behavior of states or the structure of the international system. The book focuses on legal argumentation and asks why, if the rhetoric of law is inconsequential, governments and other international actors bother engaging in it. The book considers why argumentation occurs beyond nation states. It focuses on deliberation in and around international organizations, drawing on various strands of legal, political, and international relations theory to identify common features of legal argumentation and deliberative politics. The book's central claim is that international organizations are places where “interpretive communities” coalesce, and the quality of the deliberations these communities provoke is a measure of the legitimacy of the organization.