Hannah Arendt Flashcards
(47 cards)
What is the main focus of Arendt?
Violence in the political realm
Name a academic who believes violence is only a manifestation of power?
Max Weber = “the rule of men … based on the means of legitimate … violence”
Why does Arendt believe that ‘the organisation of violence’ shouldn’t be conflated with political power?
Only works if you follow Marxist assertion that the state is an instrument of oppression owned by the ruling class
What does Bertrand de Jouvenel believe about war?
War is an activity of states which pertains to their essence
What questions does de Jouvenel’s work rise?
Would the end of warfare mean the end of states?
How dies Arendt define power and rule?
Power = an instrument of rule Rule = owns its existence to the instinct of domination
What does Jean Paul Sartre say about violence?
A man feel more like a man when he is imposing himself and making others the instruments of his will
According to de Jouvenel what is the essence of power?
To command and to be obeyed
What is the development of Jouvenel’s assertion that to be obeyed is the essence of power?
If the essence of power is the effectiveness of command then there is no greater power than what comes out the end of a gun
What does Arendt believe in contrast to thinkers like Jouvenel?
Violence isn’t a manifestation of power but power is a kind of mitigated violence
What evidence is there to support the notion that power is a form of mitigated violence?
Line up with the definition of the forms of government given in Greek antiquity (the rule of man over man)
Biblical definition of law as the simple relation between command and obedience (in reference to the 10 commandments)
What does Arendt believe is the cause of tyranny and rebellion?
The unaccounted rule of bureaucrats - what she calls the ‘rule of Nobody’
What biological evidence further corroborates are notion of power?
Discoveries of inborn instinct of domination and agressiveness
What does John Stuart Mill believe about power?
Humanity has 2 inclinations: one to be exercise power over others and the other to have power exercised over themselves
What did men of 18th century revolutions do to change the concept of power?
Believed in a republic where the rule of law would out an end to the rule of men - populations would be obedient to laws to which they have given consent
How does power manifest itself in a democratic republic?
Within all political institutions which would loose their legitimacy without the support of the people
Why is tyranny the most violent and least powerful form of government?
Power of the government rests of the numbers of people who support it
What is one of the most obvious distinctions between power and violence?
Power always stands in need of numbers whereas violence up to a point can manage without them as it relies on other processes
What are the extreme forms of power and violence?
Power = all against one Violence = one against all (not possible without instruments) - if an unarmed minority gains any victory its because the majority refused to use its power
What is an issue which Arednt is concerned over?
Thinkers using words such as power, strength, force, authority and violence as synonyms because they perform the same function but they are more complex than this
What does Arendt define as power?
The ability not just to act but to act in concert - power isn’t the property of an individual but belongs to a group and only remains in existence as long as the group keeps together
What does Arendt define as power?
Inherently singular and independent- someone may prove their strength in relation to other things/persons
Can always be overpowered by the many - jealous of the strength of an individual
How does Arendt define force?
Commonly used as a synonym for violence but should only be used to indicate the energy released by physical and social movements
How does Arendt define authority?
Can be vested in individuals e.g. between a parent and child
Can be vested in offices e.g. government bodies or the church
