polisci quiz 2

third face of power - lukes

• Just studying people’s outward behavior isn’t enough — we also need to understand their thoughts, motivations, and beliefs.

• Bias doesn’t just come from the actions of powerful people; it’s also reinforced by everyday habits, group norms, and institutions.

• Power isn’t only about making someone do something they don’t want to — it’s about shaping what they want and believe in the first place.

hegemony

Enjoying a position of power where your authority and the values you set are mostly accepted without question.

ideology

Ways of speaking and communicating that shape how we think and see the world — often in ways that distort reality

false consciousness

our conception of ourselves, our interests, and our desires is distorted by a ruling system to the point of self-harm

example of marriage in conditions of gender inequality

1. first dimension - A and B are a married couple who disagree frequently on decisions; who tends to get their way more, why and how?

2. second face/dimension - A and B are a married couple who disagree frequently on some decisions; but there are many more decisions that B never dares to bring up or raise as a legitimate option in the marriage

3. A and B are a married couple who almost never disagree; B’s desires are shaped such that B never wants anything contrary to what A wants, including what A wants for B; B has no grievances about B’s lot in life

what do all 3 faces of power have in common

they focus on power as something exercised by identfiiable agents

what assumptions do structural version sof power still make

They assume a distinction between the powerful and powerless, and between free action and constrained action.

what kind of freedom do traditional approaches to power emphasize

negative freedom - freedom from interference

how does hayward’s view of power differ from traditional ones

focuses on how power shapes freedom for all social acotrs, not just one identifeid as powerful or powerless

what does hayward mean by de-facing power

Reconceptualizing power as a network of social boundaries that defines fields of possible action for everyone.

what political function does defining the line between free and constrained action serve, according to hayward?

it privileges certain forms of social action as “natural,” “chosen,” or “true.”

How does Hayward view the relationship between freedom and constraint?

The capacities to act freely require both enablement and constraint by others and by the self — making it impossible to separate action from power.

how does hayward define power’s mechanisms

As boundaries that define fields of action for all — not tools that powerful agents use

Give examples of power’s mechanisms according to Hayward

Laws, rules, symbols, norms, customs, social identities, and standards

How can actors engage with mechanisms of power?

A: They act intentionally within or upon them (e.g., a teacher using grammar rules to shape student writing).

why are power’s mechaisms “constitutive” of action

Because they create the boundaries within which even strategic or intentional action occurs.

how are power’s boudnaries produced and maintained

Through everyday practices, institutions, and norms — not just through identifiable powerful agents.

in what two ways do power’s boundaries function

They constrain by limiting what seems possible or legitimate, and enable by providing roles, resources, and scripts for action.

What analogy helps explain Hayward’s idea of power as boundaries?

A: Video games — players’ possible actions are defined by rules and structures of the game.

How does social life differ from games or music in Hayward’s view?

A: Social rules include informal, cultural norms — and these rules themselves can be contested and changed.

hat is the ultimate struggle in Hayward’s conception of power?

A: Not just to win within existing rules, but to transform the field of possible action itself.

important feature of domination

no one wants the other to be completely without agency, like a piece of wood to a carpenter. Domination is a kind of interaction … the dominator wants to feel effective, to have transformed the will of the other … This is what makes it a “sociating process.”

what does any claim to authority require

some freedom on the part of the one under the authority (the subordinate subject) … never merely based on coercion or compulsion.

two diff sources/origins of authoirty

1. A person gains authority when their personal qualities inspire trust and confidence, making their power seem natural or legitimate.

2. Alternatively, an institution (like the state, church, or school) can grant someone authority by giving them status or power that they wouldn’t have on their own.

According to Hayward, how does the subordinate person relate to authority?

A: The subordinate participates in authority; their spontaneous cooperation is required. Feeling oppressed actually presupposes that the subordinate’s autonomy is never fully eliminated.

prestige

Based on personal charisma and individual power — it comes entirely from the person’s personality and ability to inspire or command others, creating devoted followers. It’s even more powerful than formal authority.

how is volutnary recognition related to authority and prestige

authority and prestige exist only if others acknowledge them.

what is simmel’s view on the leader and the led

All leaders are also led: politicians, journalists, teachers … the many have more agency and freedom than the idea of domination suggests

how does hayward describe law in terms of power

Law seems one-sided (commands from above) but contains reciprocity. Even despots are bound by their promises and threats of punishment.

what does reciptoricty in law imply about social power

Power and authority are mutually constitutive; those who appear to dominate are also constrained by the social system and agreements they uphold.

is domination ever absolute

no, subordinates always reatin some freedom, even if it is costly to excercise

is reciprocity central?

all forms of authority, prestige, leadership, and law rely on the acknowledgment and partial cooperation of subordinates

what does sociation require

mutual significance

if one party is reduced to mere object, the rleationship ceases to be truly social

what are freedom and domination?

entangled

domination constrains freedom but also presupposes and relies on it

are workers under captialism forced to sell labor power?

Marx claims yes, but Cohen argues no — workers are not coerced like in a labor camp. They are “free” to go on welfare, beg, or even starve.

how does cohen define “forced” in teh context of selling labor power?

Forced = having no reasonable or acceptable alternative not because they’re forced by threats, but because that’s just how things are structured.

can some workers escape selling their labor power?

Yes. Example: immigrants who become shopkeepers or small business owners. This is an exception that cannot be dismissed.

why are most workesr unable to escape the workign class (3)

1) It’s very hard.

2) People don’t think it’s possible or don’t imagine they can do it (“dull compulsion of economic necessity”).

3) Not everyone wants to rise above their class; some want to rise with their class.

what is collective unfreedom according cohen

A group lacks freedom when it’s impossible for everyone in the group to do a certain action. The unfreedom is worse if fewer people can do it and if the action is more important. Individuals experience this when some people’s ability to act limits others’ ability to do the same.

why might someone argue that workers are not unfree even if they cannot secape?

Because lack of exit options is not by human design; being unable does not necessarily equal being unfree.

How does Cohen respond to the claim that inability ≠ unfreedom?

Human choices and systems play a role — when some people move out of the working class, it prevents others from doing so. Property rights and state power also restrict what options people have. True concern for freedom must consider these built-in structural limits.

Could workers form cooperatives to escape selling labor power?

A: In theory, yes, but Cohen points out barriers:

1. High entry costs and organizational requirements controlled by the capitalist class.

2. Capitalists collectively enforce the rules of capitalism, blocking a cooperative transition.

What is the key insight about capitalism and workers’ freedom from Cohen?

A: Workers are not individually coerced in the strict sense, but the structure of capitalism and collective constraints create a form of collective unfreedom.

what does justice involve beyond distribution

Justice is about creating institutions that allow people to grow their abilities and work together effectively as a community.

what is left out if we focus only on distirbution

Decision-making procedures, division of labor, and culture.

young def of oppression

Oppression is a structural condition affecting groups, reproduced in norms, habits, symbols, and institutional rules — not requiring a single tyrannical force.

can oppression exist without intentional tyranny

Yes, it can be structural and embedded in everyday social practices, institutions, and assumptions.

opposite of oppression

not necessarily coordinate dtryanny but widespread privilege

how does young define a social group

A collective differentiated from others by culture, practices, or way of life, with shared experiences that shape members’ identity.

Do individuals form groups voluntarily?

A: Not entirely. Groups partly constitute individuals’ sense of history, reasoning, and identity. Individuals can transcend or change group affiliations, but initial group identity is often not chosen.

why cant we treat people as inidivduals to avoid oppression

Group identities are socially real, provide meaning and agency, and cannot simply be eradicated.

what do group members share according to young

Social position, processes of formation, and experiences — not a common essence. Individuals within groups can differ.

what is intersectionality in this context

Group differences intersect; e.g., racial groups contain gender, class, sexual, and ability differences.

what are the five faces of oppression

1) Exploitation,

2) Marginalization,

3) Powerlessness,

4) Cultural Imperialism,

5) Violence

exploitation

When wealth and power are systematically shifted from less powerful groups to dominant ones — for example, workers create profit that owners keep, or women’s caregiving labor benefits others without equal reward.

marginalization

Being excluded from meaningful social roles, which leads to poverty, limits personal growth, and creates dependence on institutions, reducing independence.

how does marginalization affect capacities

Even if material needs are met, individuals may feel uselessness, boredom, or lack self-respect; deprived of cultural, practical, and institutional conditions for exercising capacities.

powerlessness

Lack of authority or control over decisions affecting one’s life, low work autonomy, little skill development, minimal respect or recognition.

how does powerlessness differ from professionals adn nonprofessionals

Professionals have more autonomy, skills, and respect, but both experience different levels of power influenced by culture, race, and gender.

cultural imperalism

Dominant group’s experiences and culture are universalized as the norm, rendering other groups invisible or stereotyped.

How does cultural imperialism affect subordinate groups?

A

: They are rendered invisible and subjected to stereotypes; their perspectives are marginalized.

What is violence as a form of oppression?

A: Threats or acts of harm against a group, often socially normalized, creating fear and limiting freedom and dignity.

how is violence a social practice?

It occurs within social norms and contexts, often coordinated, premeditated, and based on hierarchy, fear, or prejudice.

How should the five criteria of oppression be applied?

A way to measure oppression using observable things — like people’s actions, social status, cultural symbols, or institutional practices.

Can these criteria compare different oppressions?

A: Yes, without reducing them to a common essence or ranking one as more fundamental than another.

how does foucault htink power ought to be conceived in modernity

Instead of asking “why” people act against others (their intentions), focus on “how” power works — what people and institutions actually do, and the ways they shape or control others.

Power isn’t just about rulers or laws. It works through everyday practices that define “truth” and shape people’s behavior. We are shaped by these truths and can only exert power by producing them.

Instead of seeing power as held by rulers (“sovereignty”), Foucault views power as woven through all social relationships — a web of domination in everyday life.

what should foucault focus on when studying power

Study how power works—the practical ways it shapes and disciplines people—rather than why people or rulers dominate.

where should power be studied acording to foucault

In local, everyday forms — institutions, families, schools, prisons — where it is concrete and less legalistic, rather than only in laws or official commands.

how does foucault view power in society

Power circulates through networks; it is not owned by individuals or classes. People are both shaped by power and carry it.

are indivudals pre-social according ot fourcualt

No. Individuals are produced by power through norms, disciplines, and institutions, and are also instruments through which power operates.

what is an ascending analysis of power

Start from micro-level mechanisms in daily life, then trace how they are transformed and integrated into broader systems of domination.

how does power relate to knowledge

Power produces practical knowledge systems (methods of observation, classification, and control) that are effective and circulate in society, not just ideological.

how does foucault think power ought to be studied

1. Focus on “how” power works, not “why” people dominate

2. Study power in its local, everyday forms

3. Power is relational and circulates

4. individuals are effects of power

5. Use an ascending analysis

6. Power produces knowledge, not just ideology

3 modes of objectification which transforms human beings into subjects

1. Scientific classification — ways of studying people that claim to be objective, turning human experiences into things that can be measured or analyzed scientifically.

2. Dividing practices — creating categories that separate people (e.g., sane vs. insane, criminal vs. law-abiding).

3. Self-subjection — how individuals come to see and understand themselves through certain social practices (like identifying as a particular sexual type or identity).

subject def

This type of power works in everyday life. It categorizes people, marks them as individuals, and shapes their identity. It imposes a “truth” they must recognize, both by themselves and by others.

3 types of struggles

1. against form so f domination

2. forms of exploitation

3. against subjection

what constitutes the specific nature of power

Power works by shaping what actions are possible for others — it doesn’t directly force behavior but structures the choices people can make.

how does foucault distinguish power from violence

• Power: acts on people’s actions, not directly on their bodies. Requires the other to be a free acting subject, leaving room for responses, reactions, and invention.

• Violence: acts directly on bodies or things, forcing, breaking, or closing off possibilities; resistance can only be suppressed.

what is the relationship between power adn freedom

• Power and freedom are not opposites.

• Freedom is both a precondition and support for power: without possible resistance, power becomes mere physical constraint.

• The relationship is an agonism/struggle, a reciprocal incitement, rather than a face-to-face confrontation.

how to analyze the power relationship

• System of differentiations: The differences between people (like status, wealth, or knowledge) that let some influence others.

• Types of objectives: The goals behind using power — such as keeping privilege, making profit, enforcing laws, or performing a role.

• Means of exercising power: The methods used — from threats or language to economic inequality, surveillance, or control systems.

• Forms of institutionalization: How power is built into institutions and formal structures.

• Degrees of rationalization: How organized, systematic, and rule-based the power relations are.

biopower

The idea that society claims the right to protect and improve its own life — leading to a kind of power focused on managing and optimizing life itself through control and regulation. Wars are then justified as necessary to defend life, turning mass killing into something done “in the name of life.”

how idd biopower form

1. Discipline of the individual body: Power treats the body like a machine — training, controlling, and optimizing it to make people more productive, obedient, and efficient (“anatomo-politics of the human body”).

2. Regulation of the population: Power also manages life at the level of the whole population — controlling things like birth rates, health, and life expectancy through policies and regulations (“bio-politics of the population”).

what are the two ways to make people into subjects?

Subject to others through control and dependence.

Subject to themselves through self-knowledge and conscience.

In both cases, power subjugates and shapes the individual.