In chapter five of the text book we talk about how to understand the forms of power. For example the book says different approaches to understanding power highlights different aspects of this important concept. I related this example to both the video on The Milgram experiment and on the reading of "The five faces of Oppression".
The Milgram experiment is a video based on peoples reactions to authority even if it goes against their morals. I find it interesting because if someone was to ask you, if you would be capable of administrating 450 volts to a person, which is severely dangerous would you? I know my reaction would be automatically NO (like many others) but what if a person of "authority" (such as Professor Applewhite) told you it was okay? Would this violent act of inflicting torture to another human being be justified? Well thats exactly why the Milgram experiment is so unique to me. This video was based on an experiment on obedience to authority.
9/12 people were capable of administrating the full 450 volts to "another person". Because the Authority figure said it was for science, these law-abiding people continue because they felt they were doing something good in the name of science. Five points that the video made about why people are okay with inflicting pain to one another was because:
-The physical presence of an authority figure increased obedience.
-The fact that the study was sponsored by scientist (a trusted authority) led many participants to believe that the experiment must be safe because science is believed to be a positive product that produces helpful knowledge for society.
-The selection of the teacher and learner status seemed random.
-Participants assumed that the experimenter knew what he was doing because he signed a consent form.
-The shocks were said to be painful, not dangerous and the teacher's were reinforced because they actually got a sence of what it felt like.
I related this sense of obedience to authority, to chapter 5. John French and Bertram Raven identified 6 bases of power in small groups and organizations. Coercive power, legitimate power, referent power, expert power, and informational power. Expert power struck out to me more in relation to Milgrams experiment because it talks about how it arises from the perception that a person has superior knowledge in a particular area. Expert power is about the perception of knowledge not necessarily actual knowledge. Someone seen as an authority carries expert power whether or not he has actual expertise. Expert power relates to the video because the teachers feel that the scientist is of authority. This is known as expert power because its a perception that the scientist has a lot of knowledge.
The text also talks about how group members tolerate a coercive leader if the group is successful in achieving it's goals, or if they trust the leader. Which again goes back to the teachers and how they kept deferring to the scientist because he was the authority figure.
In chapter 5, sociologist Patricia Hill Collins highlights the use of power to resist oppression. This relates not only to the Milgram experiment but as well with the reading on The Five Faces of Oppression. Oppression is defined as the exercise of tyranny by a ruling group. This reading explains that their are 5 types of oppression [Exploitation, Marginalization, Powerlessness, Cultural imperialism and Violence].
Exploitation is the act of using peoples labor to produce profit while not compensating them fairly. An example of this is Sweat shops because they are not paid a fair wage. The reading related this to Karl Marx's Capitalism theory, where people are free to exchange goods freely. Marx says capitalism creates the "haves" and the "have nots" causing class differences.
Marginalization is the act of relegating or confining a group of people to a lower social standing or outer limit or edge of society. The reading says that marginalization is worst than exploitation because society decides to not even use people for labor based on their race, employment status, mental/physical disability and etc. Marginalization expels people from participation in social life and severe material deprivation such as basic resources or extermination such as genocide.
Powerlessness is domination by the ruling class, and people are situated to take orders and rarely have the right to give orders. An example of this is powerless people who do not participate in democratic processess such as voting because they feel their participation won't mean anything. Powerlessness is developed through ones capacity, lack of decision making and exposure to disrespectful treatment because of lower status. Oppression can cause Culture of silence which is when oppressed people become so powerless they don't talk about oppression. This creates cultures that forbid the mention of injustice that is being committed to them. The reading says that the only way to fight oppression is through consciousness, knowledge, gaining their voice and critical perspective of their oppressors.
I related this to chapter 5 because it talks about strategies to overcome opposition by persuasion, reward, and coercion. To persuade is to get people's compliance by convincing them of the correctness of your position and goals. To reward is to encourage people's compliance by offering a positive incentive. To coerce is to force compliance by threatening, intimidating, pressuring, or harming someone.
Cultural Imperialism is taking the culture of the ruling class and establishing it as the norm. An example of this is American english being the dominant language and looking down on all other languages. This relates to chapter 5 when it talks about cultural power. Gramsci applied the word Hegemony which exists when those in power have successfully spread their ideas and marginalized alternative viewpoints so that their perspectives and interests are accepted widely as being universal and true. Groups that have power control what society interprets and communicates.
Violence is attacks that don't need a motive but are intended to damage, humiliate, or destroy a person. An example of this is sexual violence and hate crimes. Violence can be a result of Xenophobia an intense and irrational fear of people, ideas/customs that are strange.
For me the video and the reading both related equally to Chapter 5 of the text on power. Power is such a broad topic that once its broken down we see clearly how power is defined in different context. Obedience to Authority is a use power. Without the authority having power there would be no obedience and that causes disobedience and destruction. Then again to much authority can cause oppression which would be the negative outcome of over using power.
In chapter 5, sociologist Patricia Hill Collins highlights the use of power to resist oppression. This relates not only to the Milgram experiment but as well with the reading on The Five Faces of Oppression. Oppression is defined as the exercise of tyranny by a ruling group. This reading explains that their are 5 types of oppression [Exploitation, Marginalization, Powerlessness, Cultural imperialism and Violence]. Marginalization is the act of relegating or confining a group of people to a lower social standing or outer limit or edge of society. The reading says that marginalization is worst than exploitation because society decides to not even use people for labor based on their race, employment status, mental/physical disability and etc. Marginalization expels people from participation in social life and severe material deprivation such as basic resources or extermination such as genocide.
Powerlessness is domination by the ruling class, and people are situated to take orders and rarely have the right to give orders. An example of this is powerless people who do not participate in democratic processess such as voting because they feel their participation won't mean anything. Powerlessness is developed through ones capacity, lack of decision making and exposure to disrespectful treatment because of lower status. Oppression can cause Culture of silence which is when oppressed people become so powerless they don't talk about oppression. This creates cultures that forbid the mention of injustice that is being committed to them. The reading says that the only way to fight oppression is through consciousness, knowledge, gaining their voice and critical perspective of their oppressors.
I related this to chapter 5 because it talks about strategies to overcome opposition by persuasion, reward, and coercion. To persuade is to get people's compliance by convincing them of the correctness of your position and goals. To reward is to encourage people's compliance by offering a positive incentive. To coerce is to force compliance by threatening, intimidating, pressuring, or harming someone.
Cultural Imperialism is taking the culture of the ruling class and establishing it as the norm. An example of this is American english being the dominant language and looking down on all other languages. This relates to chapter 5 when it talks about cultural power. Gramsci applied the word Hegemony which exists when those in power have successfully spread their ideas and marginalized alternative viewpoints so that their perspectives and interests are accepted widely as being universal and true. Groups that have power control what society interprets and communicates.
Violence is attacks that don't need a motive but are intended to damage, humiliate, or destroy a person. An example of this is sexual violence and hate crimes. Violence can be a result of Xenophobia an intense and irrational fear of people, ideas/customs that are strange.
For me the video and the reading both related equally to Chapter 5 of the text on power. Power is such a broad topic that once its broken down we see clearly how power is defined in different context. Obedience to Authority is a use power. Without the authority having power there would be no obedience and that causes disobedience and destruction. Then again to much authority can cause oppression which would be the negative outcome of over using power.
I seriously enjoyed your entry. It seems to me that you put a lot of time and thought into it. It is so amazing to me that people would actually go through the whole session for the experiment, especially that girl major. I was hoping for her to think about it again and stop because she knew that this was harmful to the person on the other side of the room. Like you said (and I agree), that because there was a figure of authority physically present they became more obedient. It is sad to me that sometimes we are not even aware of the damage that we can be causing to others just because we are following the authorities. These people were aware that they were damaging someone whether it was fatal or not, they were still inflicting pain on another human being. It is amazing how throughout the chapter, we are able to learn all the different kinds of power, like you said; power is a broad topic that we think we are familiar with until we learn about it.
ReplyDeleteStephanie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Erika. You did an excellent job om this assignment. Your explanation of the readings and video is really very good and you apply the concepts nicely. On another note, I love the design of your blog. Great job.