The Rabbles, the Peoples and the Crowds: a Lexical Study

• Main Author: Barbara Brzezicka
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Adam Mickiewicz University 2020-06-01
• Series: Praktyka Teoretyczna
• Subjects: rabble; people; untranslatables; democracy; social exclusion
• Online Access: https://pressto.amu.edu.pl/index.php/prt/article/view/23784

The rabble, considered as a possible threat to the rule of law or as a group unworthy of civil rights, is a concept present in many languages, yet every word conveys a slightly different meaning, The article is an attempt to present the conceptual plurality of the rabble, in a way inspired by Cassin’s Dictionary of Untranslatables. The term which may be considered as a starting point is Polish motłoch, which can be translated both as ‘rabble’ and as ‘mob’. The content is organized according to some semantic patterns that can be observed in various languages and that can be used for further philosophical analysis. The article is neither an exhaustive presentation of the semantic variety related to the term motłoch, nor a philosophical analysis of social exclusion, but rather an attempt to show the plurality of meanings across languages and how it may affect and inspire philosophical inquiry.