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Knowledge and Inquiry: Power - Knowledge Relationship

Power is defined socially as the ability of someone to exert his will in a social action,

regardless of the will of other people.

Two views of knowledge and power:

Under Foucalts social construction of knowledge, created truths are internalized as reality

and people act accordingly to these created truths. Thus, all knowledge claims are social

constructs.

In Marxs cultural hegemonic ideology, the elites have the power to shape and influence

ideology to their advantage. Thus, the accepted knowledge model of society is prevalent

only because it keeps the elites in power.

Question to ponder: Are limitations or flaws in our knowledge model detrimental?

Draft answer: Yes, because limitations or inaccuracy in our accepted knowledge paradigm

limits our potential. If an inaccurate worldview is upheld, then society will not be able to

explore beyond what is already popularly accepted. Thus, society, being satiated with its

flawed ideology, will not be able to progress and develop. Also, even if development is

achieved under the inaccurate worldview, then the progress made by society is

invalidated. This is seen clearly in the scientific context: Acceptance of the indivisible

atomic theory would have prevented the invention of Lasers, the development of quantum

mechanics and the use of nuclear energy. On the other hand, development of knowledge

under the indivisible atom paradigm would be severely limited and even if any progress

was to be made, it would still pale in comparison to the strides that science has taken with

the discovery of sub-atomic particles. For example, a popular belief prior to the discovery

of sub-atomic particles was that future scientific discoveries would have to be looked for in

the sixth decimal place. What this meant was that society was so confident in their

scientific worldview that they were ready to proclaim that there were no new discoveries to

be made, only more accurate measurements of already existing scientific data. Thus we

can see that limitations and flaws in our knowledge model is detrimental as it instills a false

sense of security within society in false premises. The result of this is that the potential for

societys development is decreased.

Exertion of power:

Brute force/violence e.g: the state is the only institution with the legal right to commit a

violent act against you.

Authority - power without force

Requires the notion of legitimacy. Power, being a social construct, must be

popularly supported in order to be exercised.

Charisma - The leader possesses qualities that attract people and is central to

social action.

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Tradition - Dependent on societys aversion to change and penchant for loyalty.

Ways of doing are well established although reasons for actions may not be known.

Rational legal - Based on a set of created rules usually founded on expertise and

experience.

Question to ponder: Is expertise simply a social construct?

Draft answer: Yes, the expertise of an individual is determined socially in two ways. Firstly,

the individual must be able to be convincing. Thus, the individual must be able to convince

others in order to be taken seriously. Secondly, the opinion of the individual must be

supported by other people. This support can come in the form of opinion or data collected

from external sources. Thus, expertise is social because it entirely dependent on society

and societys acceptance of the individuals opinion. The extent of an individuals expertise

is also proportional to the number of people he is able to convince as well as the number

of people who are willing to support him. Thus expertise is an entirely social construct.

Assertion of power

Power is contested in all social situations. This is due to a combination of the concentration

of power within a small group of elites as well as the dynamism of social situations.

The yardstick for victory in a social power struggle is dependent on the victors ability to

exercise his will upon the group. In a macro view, this means that the victors ideology has

gained a foothold in society and social constructs of knowledge. The extent to which he is

able to push his ideology vis a vis other opposing ideologies is the difference in power

between the victor and the losers.

Power struggles in the world operate in a zero-sum game. There is a multiplicity of

contesting interpretations of social reality. 1 world view will dominate and be more widely

accepted than other competing interpretations. In this scenario, the initial proponents of the

domination interpretation stands to gain the most. This is because the initial proponents of

the paradigm usually have a vested interest in the adoption of this paradigm in society.

Furthermore, all ideologies will favor certain people over others. Thus, the favored group of

people will stand to gain. E.g. sanctity of human body favors most of society but

discriminates against necrophiliacs. However, in social situations, victories are never

absolute as the losers will always challenge the victors and the victors themselves willcontinually be afraid of losing the power they have amassed.

Application of concept:

Framing of ideology - Power has the ability to make people see and believe things in a light

that is favorable to them. Knowledge on the other hand is seen as a rationale for power,

giving rise to meritocratic ideologies.

Religion is the opiate of the masses - Karl Marx

Possession of cultural capital/knowledge - Knowledge is seen as tied to the intrinsic worthof the individual. A knowledgable person is taken to be of more value to society than an

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ignorant person. Thus, knowledgable people have greater social clout than ignorant people

and possess more cultural capital.

Rational legality - Knowledge of rules as cemented by perceived effectiveness of a

pragmatic approach creates power in the possessor. E.g. lawyers in bureaucratic system.

Question to ponder: Is societys adoration of knowledgable people justified? What are the

possible implications of such adoration?