Post Number Seven

1. Christianity introduced a new kind of power--"pastoral power"--which is concerned, above all else, with the salvation of individuals, and which must sacrifice itself for the individuals' salvation, rather than having individuals sacrifice themselves for it, as royal power does.

Another power structure similar to this one is between guidance counselors and students. The guidance counselor sacrifices his or her time for the students' benefit, and must worry about each individual student. If the students fail in later life, so does the guidance counselor.

2. Communication produces effects of power Foucault gives examples of communications in clearly defined power relationships, such as labor distributor and laborer, and teacher and student.

A less clear but equally valid example, I think, is a conversation between two friends in which one says, "Oh, that new movie with Jackie Chan and Jet Li is coming out this weekend." Though the sentence seems strictly about conveying information, and thus devoid of power relations, the subtext is, "I would like to see this movie," and beneath that is, "See this movie with me."

3. Power is exercised when actions modify others. For power to exist, it must be put into action. Foucault gives the physical example of power in the form of violence--violence acts upon physical things by breaking, forcing, or bending them.

An example in psychology would be in the practice of exhibitionism, or flashing. The flasher exerts power over the victim by behaving in a way (exposing themselves) that greatly modifies the behavior of the victim (screaming, running away, looking shocked). It is this modification, or this exertion of power, that the flasher seeks--not the actual exposure of his or her body.