The Democracy and the Ethics in the Light of Contingency

In this article, the author explores the relationship between ethics and democracy taking in account the contingency and its far-reaching consequences within the complex structures of democracy. To start with some basics, affiliation to the historically constituted contingencies is the ethical experience of borders/limits for the non-substantial political community. After developing the list of opportunities of democracy, the article goes on to discuss the inherent instability of democracy and the value-laden discussions the democracy is exposed to. The article then proceeds to analyse the structural links between the production of power and the freedom critical reviewing the Enlightenment-thought of indivisible freedom. Much of the contemporary philosophical discussion of these issues is enchanted by the spirit of deliberation. The author agrees with the orientation of theories of deliberative democracy but they tend to neglect issues of the links between power and freedom in democracy and the performative-persuasive practice of agents of democracy. The discussion here, while mostly raising questions rather than claiming to provide definitive answers, tries to point to the ethical dimensions of the trans- formation of contingencies