Responding to the Unspeakable

Abstract

This chapter makes a case for a multimodal account of discursive participation. In the context of tragedies where collective suffering is unspeakable, deliberative democratic theory should be sensitive to political claim-making that go beyond linguistic forms of expression. The chapter puts forward some examples of claim-making that go beyond voice, as well as practices of responsiveness that act on these political claims. To recognize that there are many forms of claim-making, however, is not enough. For deliberative democratic theory to maintain its critical bite, pluralizing norms of discursive participation must remain anchored on clear ethical commitments. The chapter draws on normative media theory’s concept of agonistic solidarity as a guidepost to assess democratic practice amidst spectacular tragedies.