Matt Moyer Dangerous Liaisons A&E Ch.

9 questions

3. Analyze A&Es claim that grading is an hegemonic instrument. Students are graded because they allow themselves to be graded. As students we enter into a social agreement that recognizes the conceptual superiority of the instructor and allows the instructor to assess what knowledge the student has gained while being a member of the course. Grading allows the instructor to be the dominant member of the course because they have the power to assign a grade that signifies intelligence or incompetence and the ability to follow instructions. If a student receives high marks then it is to be assumed that they will do well in the workforce because they have demonstrated the ability to gain mastery over a topic they were previously unfamiliar with.

5. How is power distributed? Power is distributed through power of, power over, and power with. Power of is the idea that a person has power as an attribute of their character. That they actually possess it and it is not given to them by an outside force. Power over also presents the idea that someone has power over another person as one of the attributes of their character and it is not a part of, or result of the relationship. Power with focuses on the idea that powers exists through the relationship and only while the relationship is still in effect, once the relationship ends so does the power that goes along with it. If I choose to leave my place of employment we are no longer in a relationship and there is no power left.
6. What are the mechanism by which control is produced? Control derives from the rights of performance collectively granted to different subject positions that are significant within the organizing process. It is Gramscian hegemony, not personal power, that generates control (Anderson, Englehardt 2001). To me that is saying it is not a person that possesses control over their subordinates, but they have control because as a society we have agreed upon a relationship with a superior to grant them control because through our systems of education and vocation we reward those who excel in their performance with the control over subordinates. We do this because as a society we feel that if one shows that they can handle control they should be awarded it.