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Abstract

This paper introduces the contributions to this journal issue, while presenting the hypothesis at the basis of the workshop “Come lo dico?” (How can I say it?), whose proceedings are collected in this issue. We propose to consider language and dialogue at the heart of restorative justice, advancing an interdisciplinary perspective that combines law studies relative to restorative justice with studies in argumentation and linguistics that approach dialogue as an alternative to conflict escalation. In the first part of the paper, we present the framework of restorative justice and restorative culture as an instrument to manage or prevent conflict through foundational values that put the dignity of the person at the center of the stage and require a dialogical approach for implementation. Subsequently, we introduce the origin and characteristics of argumentative dialogue, understood as reasonable and respectful of the human person, as the foundation of the restorative culture and of the reestablishment of relationships in society. While doing this, we equally discuss the need for a “linguistic revolution” in restorative culture.