The Ethics of Compromise in Democracy: A Ricœurian Perspective

This paper develops an ethics of compromise inspired by Paul Ricœur’s philosophy. Although Ricœur explicitly addressed compromise only once (1991), his broader work provides conceptual resources for rethinking it beyond moral failure or political opportunism. Rather than offering a textual exegesis, the paper mobilizes Ricœurian concepts to establish compromise as a fundamental dimension of intersubjectivity and democracy. It advances three arguments: first, ethics and politics should be understood through their intersection rather than separation or hierarchy; second, compromise is redefined as the “voluntary and innovative intersection of conflicting domains,” rather than a mere exchange of concessions; third, compromise rests on the ethical disposition of the capable yet fallible subject, committed to deliberation and the common good despite enduring disagreement.