Leiden University Student Repository

Bezembinder, Cas (2018)

Is Post-Truth Politics Really Post-Truth?

Master thesis | Philosophy (MA) (60 EC)

Contemporary politics seems to suffer from a carelessness with regards to truth. This thesis aimed to clarify whether contemporary politics is really post-truth. It did this through an analysis of multiple theories of truth and an overview of the historical origins of post-truth. It concluded that while there are multiple possible substantial theories of truth, all theories of truth have in common the existence of a correctness-notion. Analysis of modern politics shows that correctness-notions are still held by all relevant actors, which entails that they hold at least some theory of truth. Rather than being post-truth, contemporary politics suffers from political communities that have deeply differing worldviews due to lobbying by interest groups, changes to modern media, and post-modernism.

Post-truth

Truth

Idealism

Realism

Author

Bezembinder, Cas

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

Philosophy, Politics and Economics

Supervisors

Sundholm, Göran

ECTS Credits

20

Language

en