Power and persuasion

Abstract

In familiar accounts of power, if agent i can induce j to change their beliefs then i has power over j to induce belief change. Does that mean that all deliberation is simply a power game? This article examines two connected 'reliability conditions' that distinguish when such persuasion is coercive or manipulative: common reason and the intentions of the persuader. It considers three problems, (1) testimony, (2) authority, (3) trust, and why these do not belie the account. While the conditions are strict and perhaps no actual deliberation or persuasion fully abides by them, they constitute normative conditions for making judgements about the degree of manipulation in any deliberation. I also briefly consider the power of discourse as an activity in itself. Show more