THE FOUR TYRANNIES
In principle, there are three types of reasons that can cause a person to follow an order. The first, and most obvious, is fear of physical violence, including humiliation, pain, and ultimately injury or death. The second is the fear of economic harm or social degradation to the point of losing one’s livelihood. This also works conversely, with the desire for social advancement and recognition being a motivator. The third set of reasons for obedience is based on the assumption that it is right and necessary that there are people who command and others who obey, either because the commanders have a higher knowledge, or because there is a natural, God-given plan for such hierarchies. The counterpart to these three reasons for obedience are the first three types of power described below.
1. Physical Power, especially in the form of armed violence.
Throughout history, this has been concentrated within militarized states. From its Bronze Age beginnings straight through to today, physical power is all about superior weapon technology, giving those who have it the ability to dominate those who do not.
2. Structural Violence, especially in the form of socio-economic power.
The exercise of this kind of power is based on systematically unequal distribution of rights, property, income and prestige. For these inequalities and the kind of power they yield to be accepted, both ideological power and physical power are necessary. Ideology provides justification, and physical force can be used to intervene if needed.
3. Ideological Power. Historically speaking, this form has ranged from the exclusive mastery of writing to the codification of religious, moral and scientific ideologies, all the way to modern “expertocracy” and control of the mass media. It can legitimize the first two forms of power or even make them invisible by defining what is “true,” “normal,” “relevant” and “real.”
4. Linear Thinking is based on the assumption that the world functions according to predictable laws of cause and effect and is therefore controllable (e.g., an actio A produces a reactio B in a foreseeable way). While this paradigm works well for inanimate matter, it can be very misleading when it comes to living beings. The application of linear thinking to living systems has left a trail of devastation across the planet, both socially and ecologically.
To learn more, read Fabian Scheidler’s The End of the Megamachine: A Brief History of a Failing Civilization. The above text is an adaptation of Scheidler's work, edited here and there for enhanced brevity.
Also, search YouTube and Podcast for “Fabian Scheidler” and “The End of the Megamachine” and you will find a wealth of talks with the author.