The article argues that despite frequent debates about the excesses of government, public administration lacks a systematic theoretical examination of the concept of moderation. To that end, the article first questions the ancient Hellenic wisdom of moderation, which necessitates observance of the limits of the self. In concluding that the classic approach is restrictively conservative, the article builds on Nietzsche to propose an alternative approach, agonistic moderation. Agonistic moderation offers a possibility for challenging the situational boundaries of the self in a healthy contest in a community that serves as both the soil and the weight on the individual ambition.
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