An alternative understanding of power
What do men with power usually want?
More power. The lust for power is the cause for some of the world’s most horrible events and wars. Dictators are mainly driven by this lust for power, and use it to control and exploits others. Power is perceived as something evil.
Yet this idea about power is wrong. Real power is something else than the corrupted version of power dictators, bullies and politicians aspire to gain and hold. In order to understand this, we must delve into the feminist view on power; which they divide in four forms.
Four forms of power
The form of power most assume when we talk about power, is called power-over. You aim to influence the behaviour of others through sanctions, fear or pressure. When somebody exerts power-over to you, it feels like domination, or even violence. It never feels great, as it is against your consent. Feminists argue there are three other more genuine forms of power.
The first is power-within, which comes from your internal faith, beliefs, moral code, ethics, vision or love – which inspires you to act according to that internal force. This is usually also the power to lay at the root of disobedience, when those with power-over want to force you to do something, but you have a lot of power-within, you are more likely to resist.
Power-with is the opposite to power-over, with this form of power you try to inspire behaviour, but only on consent, usually through dialogue or other methods of conveying a message. Through power-with, you can build groups, organizations and movements together.
Power-to is when that combined power based on consent is used to take away power from those who illegitimate claim it (usually dependent on their power-over).
Power as life force
Civil rights strategist Reverent James Lawson (together with Martin Luther King) sees power as life force. He argues that because we are all born and we all die, we inherently have the equal amount of life force, or power of life. This can best be compared to a power similar to electricity.
The explanation of the other 4 forms of power, when perceived from the life force perspective, is that power is the capacity to achieve purpose. As life itself is powerful, it is a living power. As such, the gift of life is a gift of power.
Then it is up to us to help our children, youth and adults to use that power constructively (instead of destructively).
Therefore, nonviolence is the power of creation, that is planted in us humans uniquely – and by using that nonviolence, we can create a better world.
