public dialogue

"public talk on matters that concern us all"

One of the things that I consider to be most important for any democracy to be healthy and functioning is to have an open forum. And within this open forum to be able to freely discuss and debate whatever issues are at hand within the democracy. This element of democracy reaches back to one of history's strongest advocates of democracy, Socrates. In Socrates' honor we refer to small group discussions and debates as Socratic Dialogues. In my educational experience I have been exposed to many different examples of socratic dialogues, all of which were experiences that I thoroughly enjoyed. There is something immensely refreshing and exceptional within a socratic dialogue because it allows individuals to express their thoughts and opinions in a forum where diverse ideas are celebrated and welcomed.

Diversity, which is something that has been stressed in arts of democracy, as something that is imperative for strength, vitality and longevity in a society is certainly true when it comes to ideas. I read Plato's work on the Life and Trial of Socrates and was immensely impressed of the power that Socrates placed in ideas. But, most of all, Socrates placed a high value in questions.

Questions, I believe, are the root of public dialogue. The reason that we have public dialogue is so that individuals can discuss, debate and examine the different possibilities for our society. But, if no one questions the current norms, then there never will be any different solutions created or presented. Questioning is also essential to public dialogue because if we blindly accept what others tell us, then we will not question and think for ourselves what we actually truly believe. However, if we question and consider and reform ideas based off of our own personal research, we find that the public dialogue can be far more healthy and functioning in a democratic sense.