In this essay I want to extend the brief discussion of higher-order conditions presented in Reconstructing Argumentative Discourse (Van Eemeren, Grootendorst, Jackson, and Jacobs, 1993). After a brief discussion of the scope and function of higher-order conditions, I will examine the modes of subjectivity entailed in their description of the ideal arguer. I will then move to a discussion of the relationship between governance and rationality underwriting their description of the socio-political environment conducive to critical discussion. I will conclude the essay with remarks on the role of procedural theories of argumentation in a deliberative conception of democracy
