Amrita Week 10; Are Power Structures Inherently Wrong?
Are Power Structures Inherently Wrong?
Power structures are all around us, whether we like it or not. Our parents, teachers, such adult authority figures, as well as people our own age, leaders of clubs we’re a part of, captains of sports teams we’re a part of. With that level of power comes the ability to give direction and enforce rules and punishment. With that in mind, no one particularly appreciates being ordered around, having rules enforced upon them, being punished, and having to worry about the security of their position or privileges being stripped away if they retaliate.
Having experienced both ends of the spectrum in extracurriculars I’ve been a part of, being on the “lower” end of the rung as well as holding a significant amount of power and say in a given environment, I know what it feels like to be upset with the way I was being treated but still not feel secure enough to speak up without risking the little respect people did have for me. Later, when my position changed and I began to hold more power, I realized I was capable of setting the tone of the environment and enforcing my own desires and visions for it, I used my experiences to create change.
At first, I was dedicated to creating an environment in which the power structures in place priorly were completely deconstructed. I wanted to make everyone feel we were all on the same level. As I spent more time in this new position and understood the extent of the ability it gave me, I realized that acting as if these power dynamics didn’t exist was simply unrealistic. The truth was that I did hold more power than others. But was that wrong?
This revelation led me to question if these power structures were necessary and if there was a way to eliminate them at all. Is the existence of power dynamics something that is embedded into human nature? Does the nature of them make them inherently wrong? Are they necessary to maintain order? Such questions took up space in my mind.
After deliberating, I realized that, while it is unrealistic and even damaging to deny one’s own position and the level of power one holds, what can be controlled and produce real change is making sure power falls into the hands of the right people, who will acknowledge their position and do something meaningful with it. Moving forward, while I didn't try to deny that my capabilities were larger than others, I made sure to use my position to create a welcoming environment in which everyone felt appreciated.
Amrita, your entire blog was incredibly thought-provoking down to its title—“Are Power Structures Inherently Wrong?” engaged your audience and had me wondering not only what you had to say but also what my own answer to the question was. I enjoyed the way you tackled speaking about this issue with a more personal note, revealing your own experiences with power structures rather than straightforward facts, as I was undeniably hooked to your storytelling throughout your entire blog. In addition, the anecdotes also established ethos, as your opinions on the subject became all the more trustworthy after knowing that you’ve personally experienced what you’re talking about. I do agree with you in that trying to speak up while in a ‘lower’ position is difficult and harmful to both self-confidence as well as the overall performance of a team, as often valuable opinions go unheard. Overall, I enjoyed the story of your personal growth and matured understanding of power dynamics, and I’m excited to hear from you next week.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I think you've taken the words out of my mouth Amrita. I genuinely hate the idea of being treated like I'm less than someone else just because I am lower on a social hierarchy or power system. The amount of times my opinion has been discounted and discredited because "You don't have my level of experience" or "I'm the teacher" is just so demoralizing. The amount of times I've started hating a subject I used to love because people refuse to try to understand my reasoning or explain why I'm wrong has left me not only with bad grades in some classes, but also some resentment towards classes I used to look forward to. It's just so frustrating feeling my joy and enjoyment of something drain from me just because I am on a lower level of a power structure. I JUST HATE THE IDEA OF NO ONE GIVING A SECOND THOUGHT. I hate being ignored and have teachers that seem like they can't wait to get out of school because they don't want to teach me what I don't understand. And what's worse, they never reflect on anything we say just because they know better or something. But the fact is that just because someone might misunderstand most of the time, sometimes they genuinely might have a point that might be worth looking into. But teachers seldom do look into them. Perhaps it's just me that hates that I have to search up everything to learn what I should be taught, but who knows? Anyways I really appreciate that you bring this up as an issue that there is in our society because I have felt so bad about myself just because I was discounted due to power differences.
ReplyDeleteHi Amrita! I feel like at this point society does not even notice the "power structures" that are "all around us." We have become so used to this concept that it integrated into normalcy. In addition to the power gained the way that the individual uses their power is crucial. For example if I were the President of a certain club and I just ignore all my discord messages, never go to any of the meetings, and completely give up on the club I would honestly not be a useful person for the club. Personally, I knew someone who basically did the exact same thing I depicted above in a club I was Vice President in and it made my work load much harder as I had to carry on the excess work with a role that is viewed as less significant (compared to the Prez). Like you I had also attempted to become close friends with everyone in my team, though this was beneficial in terms of social advantages, sometimes it was also increasingly difficult to enforce things which led me to realize that "power dynamics" do exist and sometimes need to be met effectively. I completely agree with you on the fact that we cannot change an idea that is embedded into the human nature but we can ensure that "power falls into the hands of the right people." I am happy to see that you chose to write about this because it is extremely significant for people to understand that power is a responsibly and not an advantage so it is important to make use of the power we have rather than treat it as a reason to downgrade other people.
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