User:Agnese marino basc/sandbox/Approaches to Knowledge (LG seminar)/Group 9/Power

Power by Heloise

Silencing the Past by Trouillot

Trouillot stresses the fact that "History is written by winners" and we need to distinguish between the veracity of an event and the narrative created around it. For a same event there can be infinite narratives. The narratives that win and appear on our History manuals are the one chosen often by the owners of the power. Even the name of the event itself is marked by power. For instance, the "discovery of America by Christopher Colombus" in 1492 has officially been considered as an important event in 1792 and from now on in plenty of countries there is a Columbus Day. But Christopher Columbus did not discovered America but Carribeans and there were actual people living in America. So the term of discovery is just an European centered term which in addition is quite smooth. Indeed it was more about the conquest of a new continent by Europeens. During the 15th century, Christopher Columbus was nearly known and Spain had other issues such as wars and successions to deal with than the journey of Columbus. Of course the event has an importance for the Empire of Spain but this specific date and event was not a symbol yet. It is in the late 18th century that it became a symbol, a discovery. In United States for example the Columbus Day was established in 1892 after a murder of 11 Italian immigrants to celebrate a common Italian-American heritage. Furthermore as Trouillot says there is also a story of Silences : many facts are not told in the History of a nation such as a defeat in order to unite a nation and create a sentiment of pride in each citizens. Indeed History is manipulated by power from the choice of the event to the actual name of it.

Power and Science

Gender inequality in the sciences

Gender inequality has long been prevalent in the sciences, and today, though significantly better than it was at the emergence of scientific disciplines, equality is still a long way off - female researchers make up only 1/3 of those employed in the sciences across North America and Europe, and only around 14% in the UK. (This is despite of the the Equality Act of 2010, which replaced both the Sex Discrimination and Equal Pay acts of the 1970s, clearly specifying that an individual may not be discriminated against because of their gender, and hence that both genders should have access to equal opportunities.) Such inequality can be seen right from the beginning of the scientific research path, with men being significantly more likely to be awarded money from funding bodies for research. This is because evaluators tend to base their decision on the actual scientist, rather than the proposed research, and due to male researchers being perceived to have ‘better’ leadership skills, male applicants were 44% more likely than female applicants to be awarded a grant. This is highly likely to be down to second-generation gender bias, which is where positive feedback loops form as male employers tend more towards employing other males than females, because of the perception that they obtain more of the desired characteristics of a good employee, as a result of identifying more with the candidate. Looking at the receiving end of the research, 70% of research papers published between 1980 and 2016 failed to examine both men and women, leading to very severe ramifications when the research is used for practical applications – it was reported by the consumer organization DrugWatch that women have twice the chance of developing an adverse reaction to medication than men do. This is solely down to the sheer amount of medical studies that are only carried out on males, and this one-sided research is more likely to occur when it is carried out by men.

This is a prime example of how the inherent power of one distinct group within a discipline can cause an ongoing cycle of inequality both within that discipline and going on to affect others as a consequence of the discipline.

Power and Education

General information

This is the introduction of a peer journal on the concepts of Power and Education. This introduction was written by Micheal Watts. It is an extract of Power and Education Volume 1 Number 1 2009.

Summary of the argument

‘Education, education, education’ famous quote from Tony Blair (the former prime minister of the United-Kingdom)

In education, teachers require power to create an agreeable working atmosphere to ensure that students can learn in the best possible conditions. However, this raises a major concern: student lack freedom in their work and moreover in school. In the case of the power exercised by governments, the issue raised focuses upon social inequalities. Indeed, people who cannot access to a high education are kept out of power and it is a vicious circle. Therefore, power seems to be always in the hand of people who have the ability to gain it. Hence, each one of us bears a different relation to power and we are not equal in the ability to gain power as well. Upon closer inspection, it seems that power and education share a special link. As we know, education has always played a central role in humans’ life. Human beings are seeking knowledge because it contributes to their fulfilment. Indeed, the former prime minister of the United Kingdom insisted on the need of pursuing high educational studies for one main reason. A strong educational background is the key to acquire a high professional status in society and to gain power. Education as in school but also ‘long life learning’, discoveries, etc. is therefore the means through which people can expect to seize power and it is method which shapes each individual differently depending on their approach to education.

Conceptions of Power

In this article, different conceptions of power arose. For instance, Marx’s approach is arguable. He stipulates that power is centred on the relationship between social classes. In the beginning, power is in the hands of the dominant class – helped by the government – which controls the dominated class. This situation underlines power inequalities. The following step, according to Karl Marx, is the dominated uprising because they realise the domination they fell under. Consequently, this leads in a society with no more social classes and government. This idea of social inequalities is developed in the article where the power is not divided equally between every individual on Earth. It depends on the strength of their educational background.

Hobbes’s conception of power is partly applicable in this case because he argued that power is a means to accomplish specific actions. For instance, the power to teach exercises by teachers. However, Thomas Hobbes does not approach power as an instrument to wield authority over people which in education is essential for teachers to maintain discipline in class.

Foucault’s opinion on power is also developed in this article. He advocated for power as an implicit means to maintain discipline and this is the main situation that we can see in the education system.

Finally, Weber’s definition of authoritative power is applicable in this article. He defined it as a legitimate power. For instance, the power wielded by professors in classrooms.

(by Hermine)

Misuse of Education

As education does possess a strong power, misusing it may lead to world disasters. Nazi Germany definitely understood the power of education. Starting from March 1933, the nazi government modified the school syllabus. Their main goal was to model future nazi followers and soldiers. To achieve this objective, nazis inspired among other the hatred of the enemy through demonization. The government made children doubt from a very young age of everyone and everything, generating a lack of trust in the whole society, and thus producing betrayals even inside families. Thanks to their education system, the totalitarian government formed reliable citizens, following blindly their decisions.

Thus, the strong consequences of a misuse of education demonstrates its power extent. Our past shows us how important education is, and how it can model children for better or for worse. Education probably is one of the strongest existing powers.

(by Joséphine)

Power through Foucault's view by Lucia Dominguez

In this podcast we are exposed to Foucault's ideas on Power. Firstly, he explains how people look at power in an overly “simplistic” way, as though power is executed from single source : a king, a government… He additionally analyses how different types of Power exist in today's modern society, and how they affect us on a daily basis. Suggestions, and persuasions are examples of different ways that we exert our power over people we surround. As members of a materialistic and superficial society, we are constantly reenforcing what should be "normal" and "abnormal" (through the use of likes on social media, for example), and therefore exerting power and authority. Moreover, Foucault explains how power operates at all levels of society, it is everywhere dictating the choices citizens make. However, he stresses the fact that for people power is invisible because it has an ability to change our behaviour in an extremely subtle and normalised way, not allowing us to realise that we are being constantly moulded. He concludes with a very interesting idea on the power of science, saying that the more science has made society the object of study, the more science has started to categorise people. Because of science and the way it tries to organise the world, we are looking at new ways of objectifying people.

Power and the US Higher Education System

In Shana Jones’ The Issue of Power, Control and Diversity the reality of power imbalances in the US higher education system is discussed by exploring how race, ethnicity and socio-economic background act as gatekeepers to accessing higher education. Jones critiques the ‘pyramid of institutions’ system; the smallest number of the most prestigious and well-funded colleges are the least racially and ethnically diverse, whilst the larger number of less funded and more easily accessed colleges admit proportionally more students from under represented ethnic and racial groups in comparison. Jones draws parallels with Aldous Huxley’s dystopian world in his novel Brave New World to emphasise this power imbalance. In Huxley’s fictitious world, power is maintained over the individual through a pre-determined caste system and control is exercised via technological advancements. Jones uses this concept to show how we are born into a history of systemic racism which is based on inequalities in the education system, and more importantly to draw attention to the difficulty faced trying to break out of these hierarchical divisions in society. This is also an example of how fiction, one of the super concepts, can be used to reveal uncomfortable realities in society, and also highlights the role that fictitious settings and characters play in extrapolating the fears and concerns of society at the time.

(Bibi)

Power and post colonial literature

Power is a récurent theme in post colonial littérature, and can be found in numerous different work. What is also interesting to note is that post colonial littérature is not so much about how one writes the book, novel, etc, but how one analyse it and read it. Nonetheless, the notion of power tends to be very pressent, wether it’s in Heart of Darkness written by Joseph Conrad in 1889, or in more recent texts, that actually want to tackle post colonial themes, such as Colonial girl school, by Olive Senior. Those texts tends to refer to power by showing how the coloniser asserted their power on the « colonized Country », usually through education, or trying to rip of their identity. For instance, people in the colonized country had to learn about Europe’s history instead of their own, learn about Europe’s litterature instead of their own etc. When studying different texts from post colonial litterature, from people that came from of colonies, the idea that they were ripped of from their identity is récurent, and usually associated to the notion of power, and how power can be asserted over a population. However, what they write about is not the only interesting thing in post colonial litterature that can be linked to power. INdeed, it is always interesting to note that most of those writer write in English. One could say it is a way for them to show their knew identity, especially since some of them do include accents or dialects in their writing. One could argue that is a way for the writers to show that anyone, and especially people that were considered as illiterate and unculture by the colonisers, can master the language of the colonisers (an interesting idea that can actually be found in Shakespeare’s the Tempest: indeed, in this play, Caliban, who is suppose to represent a savage (not to say a monster), has learned to speak a very good English by Miranda, prospero’s daughter. From this come two interesting point one can note : first, Caliban states, when Miranda accuses him to be ungrateful towards her when she taught him how to speak properly, that she only taught him how to swear, which makes the reader/audience realise that what people consider “cultured and distinguish” is mainly a question of perspective. Moreover, Caliban is the only character that almost only speaks in iambic pentameter (the most perfect form to speak English), which shows that he, the savage and monster, can master better than all the nobles their language.). The fact people coming from colonies can master what the colonisers consider “the good language, the culture language” shows a form of power. However it can also demonstrate the power western country/coloniser still have over the world. INdeed, if people tend to write in English, it is also because it is with English that the most people will be able to read, which shows a form of power that is even more invisible than all the theme that are mentionned in post colonial work.

Some post colonial litterature worth reading (or at least litterature that can be related with post colonialism) - Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad - Translation, Brian Friel (play) - The Tempest, Shakespeare - Colonial Girls School, Olive Senior (poem) - Checking Out Me History, John Agard (poem) - The immigrants, Margaret Atwood (poem) - A Far Cry From Africa, Derek Walcott - A different History, Surat& Byatt - Things fall apart, Jackie Kay - The Cartographers tries to map a way to Zion, Kei Miller

Power and Modern Medicine (Shagun)

The clash between modern and traditional medicine has for long illustrated the power struggle that exists between the different approaches that medicine utilizes to tackle public health problems. In Donna Matheson’s article, “A right to health: Medicine as Western cultural imperialism?”, the author explores the inherent western-based roots of modern medicine and how this can often lead to clashes with countries that use a more traditional approach to medicine.

What Matheson particularly critiques in this article is the approach of implementing western-based medical approaches in developing countries, using the example of the Marburg Virus outbreak in Angola. Today, western medicine is widely accepted as the ‘better’ approach due to its rigorous positivist approach. Angolans, however, do not recognize western medicine and are accustomed to more traditional forms of healing.

The author explains how global health initiatives such as in Angola have led to the rise of western medical imperialism which highlights the power struggle and hierarchy that exists between modern and more traditional forms of medicine. In an effort to resolve epidemics, public health efforts have inadvertently promoted westernization of cultures due to the fact that western medicine is widely accepted as the ‘better’ approach to medicine by society because of its rigorous positivist approach. Western medicine stands in contrast to traditional methods, which are seen as less reputable due to the lack of a scientific approach, highlighting the inequality of different approaches within the discipline of medicine itself. The author argues for the introduction of western-based medicine into developing countries like Angola to be more of an educational opportunity for the population, and less of an enforced measure that creates the idea that western culture is better. Through education and teaching of the methods that western medicine uses to the local population, Angolans may contemplate the new approach and compare it to their own approach to medicine, illustrating how western medicine could be introduced to a society without complete westernization of the culture and exclusion of what is believed to be a weaker approach to medicine. Thus it may be concluded that different approaches to medicine hold different levels of credibility, leading to the more positivist approach to be regarded as more authoritative and other approaches such as traditional medicine to be relegated to myth.

Power and gender - Notes on Andrea Long Chu's Females

Long Chu's memoir/manifesto discusses her concept that gender is a person's reaction to the realisation that one throughout life is forced to accommodate for someone else's desires, and that this creates an inherent state of powerlessness that is fundamental to being human. Long Chu posits that this universal experience of 'sacrificing the self for the desires of another' is the defining tenet of 'femaleness', and that therefore all of humanity is female as all of humanity is to some degree powerless. Female is defined by her as 'not an anatomical or genetic characteristic of an organism, but rather a universal existential condition'

However, it is obvious that people who are deemed women and people who are deemed men have starkly different experiences of powerlessness, and Long Chu goes on to explain how this fact can be true while 'femaleness' remains a universality. Men and women are able and expected to react in different ways to their femaleness. Girls will see the women around them internalising and accepting their role as subordinate and thus from an early age are taught through social cues that this is how they should act; conversely, boys will see the men surrounding them rejecting and suppressing their femaleness and will act accordingly - and this acceptance or rejection, according to Long Chu, creates gender. This idea creates an interesting conundrum as to whether, if to be female is to be powerless, any attempts of rebalancing power inequalities between men and women are contingent on a rejection of femininity. Long Chu cites MacKinnon, a lawyer who wrote extensively on gender politics, who claimed that 'each element of the female gender stereotype is revealed, as in fact, sexual'. As Mackinnon evidently equated female sexuality with female powerlessness, the question then arises if all heterosexual relations are indeed either internalisations or rejections of femaleness, and therefore whether all heterosexual relations are in fact power struggles.

Long Chu later goes on to explain that all struggles for power throughout history are caused by one group's attempts to mitigate their sense of powerlessness by enforcing fabricated power on another group. The most obvious case for this argument is the literal designation of 'femaleness' to only women, which Long Chu argues is done solely in a desperate attempt escape the fact that all humans are at their core equally unpowerful. 'Politics begins, in every case, in the optimistic belief that another sex is possible. This is the root of all political consciousness: the dawning realisation that one's desires are not one's own, that one has become a vehicle for someone else's ego'. In this way, power is constructed on a broad societal scale to compensate for a fear of lack of power on an interpersonal scale.

‘Encircling the Power of Journalism’ Martin Eide (Lottie)

‘Power is not a capacity that is possessed by an agent once and for all. Neither is it permanently anchored in certain societal structures’

This journal emphasises the power of journalism, specifically on politics. The author states that ‘journalism has become an intimate and imperative part of the exercise of power’. This is particularly relevant in our modern-day society where almost everything is documented either in traditional media or on social media; the President of the United States is active on Twitter and the Royal Family now have their own Instagram accounts. As the article states: ‘every social institution is today a media institution’. In the case of politics, the text states that journalists ‘are crucial intermediators and interpreters between the mighty and the people’, making politics more accessible and understandable for the masses. However, this control over information reaching the public can be seen as a potential issue as Brian McNair states that ‘Journalists have become “agents of instability rather than of control”’. This leads us to examine the source of information when it is presented to us, something which is relevant across all disciplines. The text emphasises the fact that ‘it is important – for the journalist as well as the public – to question the prevailing media logic’, linking very much to the widespread idea of “fake news” and its implications, something which is a definitive downfall of technological developments in the media.

This article raises similar issues to that put forward in the ‘Truth in History’ article by William Dunning. Both imply that it is important to recognise the fact that power structures affect the information that reaches the public, and the fact that sometimes information is manipulated for political (or personal) purposes. This is strongly linked to the issue of truth within interdisciplinarity and an awareness of it should affect how we interpret information we come across; it is important to recognise the fact that the voice with the most power is usually the one that is heard, regardless of issues of accuracy or motive.

Power in Museums

It is undeniable that the presence of colonial power runs through the core of some of the most well-known metropolitan museums in the world. In the 1980s, the global decolonization movement began to become the focus of concerted efforts by countries to see the restitution of their cultural heritage. Currently there are attempts to repatriate items back to their country of origin and significance, such as the Gweagal shield in the British Museum, which was crucial to Indigenous and settler relations in Australia, though many museums still refuse to agree to the requests being made or even acknowledge the imperialist method in which this item may have ended up at their institution. However, there are productive ongoing relationships between museums and the formerly colonised nations - the aim is not to merely ‘decolonise’ their collections and practices, but to confront and explore the complex histories that constitute their exhibits. As museums are places which are used to teach and represent the history of both countries and people, it is imperative that the future generations understand the consequences and misfortune behind these items and displays. Individuals such as UCL alumna Alice Proctor, who started 'Uncomfortable Art Tours', focused on the way British institutions such as the V&A, Tate Britain, and National Gallery represent and display evidence of the British Empire, also pave the way forward with their efforts to bring to light the injustices that must be acknowledged and rectified.

(Selina)