Power as a Tool to Change

Stanley Milgram - “often it is not so much the kind of person a man is as the kind of situation in which he finds himself that determines how he will act.” (Allen, 2003)

Although written in 1974, Milgram’s take on power truly questions the dynamics of our connections with people on a micro-structural basis, and even effecting the global structures that we constantly fall subject to in everyday life (Furze, et al, 2008). Such social interactions can inevitably develop who we are, how we think, and how we behave (Buchanan, 2002). As put forth by John Allen, the author of Lost Geographies of Power, the generalised concept of power is in fact not what we think it is. He believes that power is a complex variety of concepts that ‘possess their own relational peculiarities’, these of which include but are not limited to the expressions of dominance, authority, seduction, manipulation, and coercion.

As a part of this assessment I have decided to find a community that almost entirely focuses on associational power (Allen, 2003), yet still includes these ‘relational peculiarities’, because of this I became a member of Care2. Through the use of associational power, the creators of the site have attempted to appeal to their target audience in an emotionally manipulative way, which is accepted by all members of the community, as expressly seen in a video they comprised (https://vimeo.com/138257670) Through this ability to create a sense of community through solidarity, and a particular mode that appeals to the outer community, truly embodies the power differences between those writing the petitions and those whom are signing them.

Image 1: Stand for Good (Care2)

Because of the general assumption that power is an inherently negative thing, Care2 uses the repressive powers of large scaled cooperation’s that hold the appeal of many people throughout society and morph the social normalities that the instrumental power of the cooperation’s bring to society, to highlight our willingness to be dominated by unethical powers.

Although the creators of Care2 are not openly expressing the power that they hold, the authors of the petitions and articles hold some authority over what is being publicly addressed on the site, and how such issues can be perceived by the target audiences. Care2 also brings awareness of topical issues to the wider community by the overlapping of dominant virtual networks such Facebook, allowing people to openly discuss such issues.  

As I read some of the petitions, it became clear that because networks such as Facebook were linked to this community and because of its geographically diverse community, relationships are obviously stretched over space, yet they also possess a sense of closeness between the members in the community and those who sign the petitions. Not only this, but when you sign up for Care2, you decide what foundations etc. you want to support, so then you only are associated with members who are also passionate about the topic. By using this form of associational power, the Care2 community has shown the diffusion and embodiment of the many powers prevalent in society.

Referencing:

Bunchanan, M. (2003). Small worlds and the ground- breaking theory of networks. Nexus. W.W. Norton & Company.

Allen, J. (2003). Lost geographies of power. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

Care2, Stand For Good (image) Retrieved from 

https://www.facebook.com/Care2/photos/a.1015137936970093.832626.25852730092/10158372134770093/?type=1&theater

Furze, B., Savy, P., Webb, R., James, S., Petray, T., Brym, R.J., Lie, J. (2008). From Personal Troubles to Social Structures’, in Sociology in Today’s World. 3rd ed Cengage Learning Australia. Melbourne, Australia.

Kuttainen, V. (2017).  BA1002: Our space: Networks, narratives and the making of place, lecture 2: Power. [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://learnjcu.edu.au