In Defense of Community: Athenian Legal Rhetoric and Its Modern Legacy in American Foreign Policy

Authors

Bradley Aron Cooper

Publication Date

12-1-2011

Document Type

Article

Abstract

This Article will examine how the rhetoric of the legal speechwriters reflected idealized views on participatory democracy and the rule of law. Next, this Article will attempt to show that these same views also supported a strong Athenian tradition of opposing tyranny, and that this, in turn, led to the inclusion of anti-tyrannical rhetoric in some of the legal speeches. Finally, this Article will address the lasting legacy of this anti-tyrannical rhetoric by giving evidence of its modern usage in the rhetoric of American foreign policy and by proposing reasons for its enduring presence.

DOI

10.37419/TWLR.V18.I2.3

First Page

221

Last Page

251

Recommended Citation

Bradley A. Cooper, In Defense of Community: Athenian Legal Rhetoric and Its Modern Legacy in American Foreign Policy, 18 Tex. Wesleyan L. Rev. 221 (2011).
Available at: https://doi.org/10.37419/TWLR.V18.I2.3