New release: Phenomena of Power. By Heinrich Popitz
10. November 2017
Authority, Domination, and Violence
Introduction by Andreas Göttlich and Jochen Dreher
Translated by Gianfranco Poggi
New York: Columbia University Press 2017
Reference
In Phenomena of Power, one of the leading figures of postwar German sociology reflects on the nature, and many forms of, power. For Heinrich Popitz, power is rooted in the human condition and is therefore part of all social relations. Drawing on philosophical anthropology, he identifies the elementary forms of power to provide detailed insight into how individuals gain and perpetuate control over others. Instead of striving for a power-free society, Popitz argues, humanity should try to impose limits on power where possible and establish counterpower where necessary.
Phenomena of Power delves into the sociohistorical manifestations of power and breaks through to its general structures. Popitz distinguishes the forms of the enforcement of power as well as of its stabilization and institutionalization, clearly articulating how the mechanisms of power work and how to track them in the social world. Philosophically trained, historically informed, and endowed with keen observation, Popitz uses examples ranging from the way passengers on a ship organize deck chairs to how prisoners of war share property to illustrate his theory. Long influential in German sociology, Phenomena of Power offers a challenging reworking of one of the essential concepts of the social sciences. (publisher)
The first edition of this book was published in German at Mohr (Tübingen) in 1986.
Heinrich Popitz (1925–2002) was professor of sociology and founding director of the Institute for Sociology at the University of Freiburg. With his work around the central concepts power, norms, technology, and creativity, he became a classic of sociology. His scientific estate is part of the Social Science Archive Konstanz.
Dr. Jochen Dreher is Scientific Director of the Social Science Archive Konstanz.
Dr. Andreas Göttlich is researcher at the DFG funded research project “Waiting. Exploring a Social Phenomenon of Everyday Life.”