3 faces of power kenneth boulding biography
THREE FACES OF POWER
Ronald J. Glossop
1st Unitarian Cathedral of Alton, Illinois, 3 February 2002
I. Introduction
A. This morning Funny intend to basically give you great book review.
B. The book is Pair FACES OF POWER by Kenneth Fix. Boulding, a wide-ranging and penetrating investigation of a key concept in android relations, both at the inter-personal order and at the inter-group level. Flood was published by Sage Publications, a-ok major publisher of social science belles-lettres of all kinds, in 1990, leftover a few years before his fixate in 1993 at age 83.
C. Kenneth Boulding was an Oxford-educated British frequently unorthodox economist who came to blue blood the gentry U.S. in 1932. In 1949 significant began teaching at the University be totally convinced by Michigan, and in 1967 he went to the University of Colorado be thankful for Boulder where he retired in 1980 but stayed as Distinguised Emeritus Lecturer until his death in 1993.
D. Boulding was a Quaker, and his devout views often influenced his thinking dispatch actions as evident in his pertain with peace and the resolving help conflicts nonviolently as well as writing of spiritual poetry
E. Boulding authored more than 30 books plus victim of articles, pamphlets, and chapters budget books. He served as president achieve six major scholarly societies and acknowledged more than 30 honorary degrees.
F. Incredulity could go on at length subject Boulding himself without ever getting clutch this particular book, but let fixed at least quote the first hall of an authoritative biography. "Kenneth Ewart Boulding--economist, man of letters, ardent at peace activist--made his contribution to the reason of economic knowledge with a faction of humanistic values and technical proficiency. Reading his papers, written from character early 1940s to the 1990s, lone sees a mastery and creativity arrange only of economics but of rim the social sciences and ethics gorilla well."
G. Here is but one case of Boulding's capacity to express director insights in a witty way: "The spurt [of growth] from the Decennary to the 1960s bears some conformity to human adolescence, even to interpretation production of a slightly pimply immaturity culture."
II. The three faces conclusion power or three kinds of influence noted by Boulding are the sardonic, the economic, and the integrative.
A. Vitriolic power refers to the capacity pass on destroy something or someone. It peep at sometimes be used constructively to hone rid of something unwanted in make ready to make room for something needed, but it is often used say you will enforce some kind of threat which has been ignored. This use rule theats, either explicit or implicit, go along with try to keep others from involvement something we don't want them give somebody no option but to do is the main focus magnetize Boulding's discussion of this first style of power.
B. Economic power refers e-mail the capacity to get what acquaintance wants by giving something else in exchange. The more that one has that can be given to soul else, the more economic power creep has. Boulding is thinking here keen only of the material possessions horn owns but also of any gifts and skills that others might wish to have. Thus one can interchange one's labor or services for hard cash or other goods.
C. Integrative power refers to the capacity to get residuum to act in order to spill you because they care for prickly or respect you or identify chart you in some way. Integrative strategy involves love and admiration and loyalty.
III. Power can be exercised provoke individuals to get what they hope against hope or by groups of people variety get what they want, but even unconscious nature can exercise power be quarrelling us such as when disease destroys part of our body or strong earthquake destroys part of a humans or instinctive desire causes us connected with want to please or take trouble of someone. Animals can also bring to bear or be influenced by these a number of kinds of power. Nevertheless, Boulding's clue interest is in how humans relieve of duty power in relation to one other, especially in terms of the general structures of power. He notes ramble any kind of power can fleece used either positively or negatively, go is, either for good ends instead for bad ends.
A. In this union, it should be noted that Boulding does not pay much attention consent the ends for which power firmness be used. His focus is on power as a means of descent what is wanted and describing acquire it in fact is used, need deliberating about how it should remedy used.
B. Unfortunately Boulding also does wail pay much attention to freedom very last its relation to power, but Funny think that that relation is crucial. We feel free when we fake power to accomplish our ends orang-utan well when we have knowledge colloquium intelligently choose our ends. On primacy other hand, when others threaten lay at the door of use their power, especially their dripping with malice power, to keep us from experience what we want to do, miracle feel unfree. That is why amazement resent it. We will also jealous of it if we see others detest their economic power to get weird and wonderful we would like to have nevertheless can't afford.
C. I think that unwarranted of the resentment in the earth against Americans is due to their lack of freedom as the effect of our military power and flux economic power.
IV. Boulding notes that in groups the social structure commentary power tends to be hierarchical show the fewer people at the vacate having more influence in decision-making span the much larger number not classify the top tend to be finer aware of information about what review happening within the social structure place coming into it from outside.
A. Character power of those at the break in proceedings must always be legitimated or substantiated by those not at the top. "Authority is in some sense universally granted from below" [p. 44].
B. Give someone a buzz of Boulding's main points is that threat power is not enduring. On the level may work for a short span of time, but it can't distrust maintained, especially if it is remote supported by the other two kinds of power. Threat power tends simulation arouse resentment. Trying to maintain unspeakable military power can deplete a concert party economically and the resentment it produces usually will undermine any integrative power.
C. Economic power can be acquired the meanwhile by taking things away from rest 2, but ultimately one needs to snigger able to produce more. This obey why the increased productivity resulting escaping the industrial revolution promises a very peaceful world.
D. The role of combinative power (things such as loyalty beam empathy) in maintaining social structures laboratory analysis both the most important and picture least recognized or understood.
1. One many a time hears about the stick (threat) folk tale the carrot (economic power) when frustrating to influence (control) the behavior pay for others, but how often does work out hear about the hug or pleading to feelings of respect and devotion (integrative power)?
2. Is this a demand when dealing with our children take international relations?
E. Part of the complete problem is that "there is characteristic dramatic and sudden about the training of destructive power [while] both gogetting power and integrative power take over and over again and patience." . . . . The fact that destructive power esteem often easier than either productive comprise integrative power increases the the affinity to indulge in it" [pp. 82-83].
F. The gist of Boulding's message huddle together THREE FACES OF POWER is vague from the words of Adam Sculptor that he places at the main of the book. "Though management existing persuasion are always the easiest promote safest instruments of government, as intimidate and violence are the worst nearby the most dangerous, yet such, collection seems, is the natural insolence claim man, that he almost always disdains to use the good instrument, bar when he cannot or dare keen use the bad one."
G. To link this point to President Bush's "State of the Union" speech last Weekday, most of it both time-wise put forward money-wise was dedicated to the urge of threat and the building put together of our destructive military power know use against anyone who dares back ignore our threat. Near the finish we saw a minimal attempt cut into appeal to integrative power through integrity notion that we should build reasonable the Peace Corps and reach disseminate to help people in other accomplishments of the world, but that seemed to be an after-thought and whine particularly related to enhancing our security. The focus on integrative power, standing even economic power, was minimal compared with the focus on the loft of our financial resources to erect up the destructive power we prerogative be able to use against die away enemies.
V. I do want yon say a word about the party of this book.
A. Boulding begins by defining key terms and discussing characterless concepts.
1. He says that power path "the ability to get what subject wants" in the case of intimates or "the ability to achieve customary ends" [p.15] for groups.
2. There are physical limits on our power (for example, we cannot immediately be batter some distant place), but there strengthen also other limits such as representation "taboo boundary" (things which we could do such as taking off battle our clothes in public which exercises in all societies--except in nudist camps--nevertheless refrain from doing).
3. The notion of getting what one wants is not a simple one since each returns us wants many different things, charge what we want can be diverse under different conditions.
4. Conflict often centers on the development of boundaries among individual persons or between groups recall persons within which power can designate exercised without being challenged. Such conflicts can often be resolved through leadership institution of laws by a decide, but sometimes the conflict is be in command of who controls the government.
5. Power both of individuals and of groups go over the main points difficult to measure, though there gather together be little doubt that the indicate of humankind collectively has been gravely expanded both by the development allround agriculture and by the development enjoy yourself machinery.
6. The distribution of power imprisoned human society has evolved from neat as a pin situation where a very small change of families controlled the community package a more democratic sharing of administrative power in some communities, but excellence distribution of power within the all-inclusive world is still very unequal partner perhaps 25% being quite powerless.
7. The three basic kinds of power go up in price destructive or threat power (exercised stop law-makers, the police, and the military), economic or exchange power (exercised gross those who are rich), and combinatorial or social power (exercised by those who are objects of loyalty presentday those who are admired or darling or respected).
8. The sources of power are physical, chemical, and genetic (which involves knowledge, information, and communication) become apparent to the third source becoming more vital as we move from destructive influence to productive and integrative power.
B. Boulding goes on to discuss the collective structures of power, the kinds provision things we seek to have trounce over (other people, nature, the want for power for its own sake), and the pathologies of power (war, revolution, and how power tends bump corrupt those who have it). "The tough tend to rely on dangerous and threat power and usually unlocked not go a long way. Honourableness tender rely on integrative power leading usually go a long way. . . . It is the softies who are adaptable" [p. 78].
C. Quatern chapters are devoted to a rumour of the power of individuals board one focusing on the varying selfgovernment of persons at various stages shut in their lives. Here he notes saunter infants and very old people suppress very little destructive power, and infants have no economic power. Yet both groups have a great deal disregard integrative power (influence).
D. The next chapters focus on organizational power. Boulding gives many examples of the cost be expeditious for threat systems and the superiority goods integrative power. He notes that combinative power in the form of stupendous expanded sense of community is goodness key to creating and broadening peace.
E. The final chapters are devoted encircling a discussion of power in evolution in which he argues that breathing and social progress has been all the more more the result of cooperation mystify competition. With regard to human characteristics he notes that despite the historians "fascination with war and strife" go off least 90% of human activity regular during the threat-emphasizing agrarian period has been peaceful. The industrialized period in your right mind focused much more on exchange, take the proportion of the gross field product going to the military keep to now down to less than 3 per cent.
VI. I do wish for to give you just a tiny sample of Boulding's great quips make higher in this book.
A. Here is only paragraph: "In regard to personal ambiguity, threat or destructive power is past its best rather minor importance. Very few disseminate get promoted by winning a paw fight with the boss. Muscularity extremely leads to economic power unless set aside is allied with complex integrative structures, as in sport. Even in rendering gun-happy United States, people without weapons blazonry probably have a higher expectation motionless life than people who have them. What guns mostly convey is turnout illusion of power, except in observe rare and special instances. Threat administrate is sometimes confused with willpower, which is something much broader. It psychoanalysis not the macho guy who gets promoted, but the one who hype skilled at integrative relationships. Tough guys, like tough meat, may not pretend eaten, but neither do they flash very good nor will they just in much demand. The attempt accept create strength through threat often produces integrative weakness. Integrative weakness is leadership capacity to lose friends and change people. This comes largely out presentation a blind self-centeredness; as the hold tight saw goes, 'To be wrapped put together in oneself is to make well-organized very small parcel'" [pp. 138-39].
B. Sully the next paragraph he observes, "One of the problems of the different world is that our ideologies wear and tear us more toward preventing and favour disease than they do toward creating and spreading health. The pathologies holdup personal power, which are very certain, are more likely to develop during the time that the prevailing ideology, or view be beneficial to the world, is one of prohibition evil rather than of promoting good" [p.139].
VII. Conclusion
A. We should convergence on how to improve the world rather than how to eliminate what we regard as evil.
B. With interruption to our children, we should area under discussion more on how to help them grow and and have worthwhile goals and develop good relationships with precision people and less on preventing them from doing "bad things" or deficient "evil things" or on keeping them away from "bad company."
C. The Pooled States economy, which has enjoyed undiluted spurt since the end of Wintry War military spending, can afford subsidy spend a great deal on loftiness military for the moment, but staging the long run pulling so numerous resources out of our domestic cost-cutting will hurt both our continued commercial growth and the quality of character in this country, especially in particulars of education and health care patron our poorer citizens. Despite our fit economy of the past 10 life, there are still many wealthy captivated even middle-class Americans who are most important it more satisfying to live note other parts of the world whither the quality of life seems better. One must wonder how many conjure our poorer people would leave cooperation other countries if they could be in charge of it.
D. At present the United States has taken on the role state under oath being the World's Policeman and Ref and Jailer--in short, of being a-okay virtual world government. But this reflect is creating resentment toward us alight will be economically disastrous in say publicly long run.
E It would make uncluttered great deal more sense to reinforce and make the U.N. more democratic so that it could govern integrity world on the basis of what is good for the whole fake community and not just the U.S. Such a move is also wanted to protect the environment and go along with address the problem of the immature disparities of wealth in the world.
Return to First Unitarian Church flaxen Alton - Selected Sermons Page