Power functions by controlling the exceptional rather than by sanctioning
Evidence
Thus power rests on the fact that there are possibilities, whose realization is avoided. The avoidance of sanctions (which are and remain possible) is indispensable to the function of power. Each actual recourse to avoidable alternatives, each exercise of violence, for example, changes the communication structure in an almost irreversible way. It is in the interests of power to avoid such an occurrence. Thus, already in terms of its structural quality (and not only by reference to laws), power rests upon controlling the exceptional case. ā Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, 621
Categorization
Category: Causal Relationships
- XREF: Directly relevant to the Ishiguro thesis: Lord Darlingtonās authority never needs overt coercion; its structural power is precisely that the avoidable alternative (Stevens confronting him) is never realized.
- SEED: Essay angle: ācontrolling the exceptional caseā as the mechanism of soft, institutional authority ā could bridge Luhmann and Stevensās total deference.
Related
- Power functions through unexercised possible sanctions rather than actual coercion (similarity 0.86)
- Power arises only at the moment positive rewards are threatened with withdrawal (similarity 0.79)
- Power works by temporalizing violence into avoidable future events rather than present force (similarity 0.78)
Broader Connections
- Power functions only when few problems actually require power
#expands(0.80) ā Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, 728 - Discoursing on power differs fundamentally from being silenced by it
#corroborates(0.60) ā Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 249 - Power symbols express stabilized possibility, not resemblance to what is possible.
#expands(0.60) ā Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, 639 - Power as damage threat cannot explain powerās order-creating function in complex societies.
#complicates(0.50) ā Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, 636