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Power and Powerlessness: Quiescence & Rebellion in an Appalachian Valley
Explains to outsiders the conflicts between the financial interests of the coal and land companies, and the moral rights of the vulnerable mountaineers.
267 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
July 25, 2022
If there are two types of good social science studies, the ones that neatly unearth and elaborate what you intuitively know, and the ones that attack their subjects from a very unexpected and novel angle, Gaventa's book is the former.
Throughout the book, Gaventa takes a mining region in the US as his case to answer one single question: Why, in situations of explicit injustice and poverty, do people remain quiescent and not rebel? To answer this question, he develops a threefold theory of power that is based on Steven Lukes' Power and Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. It turns out that the power does not only physically oppress the people and institutionally exclude their grievances as "non-matters", but also penetrates into their minds, imposing and shaping their desires, needs, wants, expectations and hopes.
There are heartbreaking moments in this book such as when, during a miners' strike in 1930s, the US establishment shoots the journalists, bombs the miners' kitchens, arrests and imprisons dozens of miners, distorts the news and launches a red-scare. Or when, in 1969, the bosses of pro-establishment miners union instigates the poor miners to murder Joseph Yablonski, a progressive unionist who wanted to democratise the union and sought better working conditions for the miners.
For contemporary social scientists, the arguments of the book may sound a bit outdated or commonsensical as it belongs to a pre-Foucault era of power studies. But its historical analysis and the pursuing fieldwork are so powerful, so admirable.
There is a recent trend among the contemporary intellectuals and white collar workers to blame the masses for their slavish support for the ruling classes. This book makes it clear that this is the result of decades-long, incessant harassment, disinformation and oppression campaigns by the ruling classes. As Gaventa quotes from Memmi,
"As power develops its justifying ideology, so too, must powerless: in order for the legitimacy to be complete, it is not enough for the colonized to be a slave, he must also accept this role" (p. 32).
Throughout the book, Gaventa takes a mining region in the US as his case to answer one single question: Why, in situations of explicit injustice and poverty, do people remain quiescent and not rebel? To answer this question, he develops a threefold theory of power that is based on Steven Lukes' Power and Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. It turns out that the power does not only physically oppress the people and institutionally exclude their grievances as "non-matters", but also penetrates into their minds, imposing and shaping their desires, needs, wants, expectations and hopes.
There are heartbreaking moments in this book such as when, during a miners' strike in 1930s, the US establishment shoots the journalists, bombs the miners' kitchens, arrests and imprisons dozens of miners, distorts the news and launches a red-scare. Or when, in 1969, the bosses of pro-establishment miners union instigates the poor miners to murder Joseph Yablonski, a progressive unionist who wanted to democratise the union and sought better working conditions for the miners.
For contemporary social scientists, the arguments of the book may sound a bit outdated or commonsensical as it belongs to a pre-Foucault era of power studies. But its historical analysis and the pursuing fieldwork are so powerful, so admirable.
There is a recent trend among the contemporary intellectuals and white collar workers to blame the masses for their slavish support for the ruling classes. This book makes it clear that this is the result of decades-long, incessant harassment, disinformation and oppression campaigns by the ruling classes. As Gaventa quotes from Memmi,
"As power develops its justifying ideology, so too, must powerless: in order for the legitimacy to be complete, it is not enough for the colonized to be a slave, he must also accept this role" (p. 32).
February 23, 2014
I was expecting this book to be a good, informative analysis of working class Appalachia, but it completely exceeded my expectations in every way. To say I was blown away by it would likely be a bit of an understatement.
If you can make it past the theory- and jargon-heavy first chapter (which ends up being tremendously useful later on) you will be rewarded with not only a history of Central Appalachian working class struggles, or their often apparent absence, but also with a new and unique way of looking at power relations and the theory behind them. The primary question the book seeks to explore is why, in the face of obvious abuse, oppression, and exploitation of coal miner at the hands of the coal companies, their local governments, and the unions that allegedly represent their interests, do the coal miners and other residents in the Clear Fork Valley NOT rebel. Not just that, but often they seem to be complicit in the very processes that keep them in a position of powerlessness and poverty. This opens up Gaventa's ideas of a new way of analyzing power relations, called a third-dimensional approach, that suggests the miners and their neighbors aren't idly accepting their fate and gives some hope that, if they are ever able to strike at the roots of the power structure in their environment, there can be hope for meaningful change.
It's, at times, a dark, frustrating, and deeply upsettng book. It also offers, however, a beacon of hope for the struggles the people of Central Appalachia, and indeed the millions of working class people around the world who find themselves in strikingly similar situations.
If you are at all interested in the post-Foucalt theory of power relations, working class struggles, or Appalachian history, you NEED to read this book. Borrow mine if you must, but read it, and read it now!
If you can make it past the theory- and jargon-heavy first chapter (which ends up being tremendously useful later on) you will be rewarded with not only a history of Central Appalachian working class struggles, or their often apparent absence, but also with a new and unique way of looking at power relations and the theory behind them. The primary question the book seeks to explore is why, in the face of obvious abuse, oppression, and exploitation of coal miner at the hands of the coal companies, their local governments, and the unions that allegedly represent their interests, do the coal miners and other residents in the Clear Fork Valley NOT rebel. Not just that, but often they seem to be complicit in the very processes that keep them in a position of powerlessness and poverty. This opens up Gaventa's ideas of a new way of analyzing power relations, called a third-dimensional approach, that suggests the miners and their neighbors aren't idly accepting their fate and gives some hope that, if they are ever able to strike at the roots of the power structure in their environment, there can be hope for meaningful change.
It's, at times, a dark, frustrating, and deeply upsettng book. It also offers, however, a beacon of hope for the struggles the people of Central Appalachia, and indeed the millions of working class people around the world who find themselves in strikingly similar situations.
If you are at all interested in the post-Foucalt theory of power relations, working class struggles, or Appalachian history, you NEED to read this book. Borrow mine if you must, but read it, and read it now!
September 17, 2012
I first read Gaventa's Power and Powerlessness for an undergraduate political theory class. It left a mark on me then, as I took this class during the 2008 Presidential campaign. The book spoke to a question that plagued me during that time, namely why it seems that so many people vote and act in a manner that appears contrary to their interests.
Now, in the 2012 campaign season, I decided to reread the book. Gaventa touches on that question in it, but he hardly limits his analysis to that. The focus of his book is the effect power has on those who don't have it. He breaks his analysis down into three dimensions of power: the first is direct bargaining and participation, the second is the exclusion of the powerless from that bargaining process and/or agenda-setting by the powerful, and the third is the internalization of the ideals, values, and preferences of the dominant by the dominated. All of this is enveloped in a case study of a Central Appalachian coal mining community.
The analysis is compelling. Power is portrayed here as a shaping force, capable of producing its own legitimacy - whether it be wielded by mine owners, absentee corporations, local elites, or even union bosses. Gaventa goes to great lengths to demonstrate how the miners' acceptance of their miserable lot is not a natural or inevitable state of affairs, but rather one imposed and maintained through the operation of power.
To quote some of his conclusion: "...the total impact of a power relationship is more than the sum of its parts. Power serves to create power. Powerlessness serves to re-enforce powerlessness. Power relationships, once established, are self-sustaining."
This is a compelling book with analysis which remains relevant 30 years after it was first written. The particular circumstances of the miners may have changed since then, but the overall points being made about power, powerlessness, and the maintenance of inequality is a lesson for us still.
Now, in the 2012 campaign season, I decided to reread the book. Gaventa touches on that question in it, but he hardly limits his analysis to that. The focus of his book is the effect power has on those who don't have it. He breaks his analysis down into three dimensions of power: the first is direct bargaining and participation, the second is the exclusion of the powerless from that bargaining process and/or agenda-setting by the powerful, and the third is the internalization of the ideals, values, and preferences of the dominant by the dominated. All of this is enveloped in a case study of a Central Appalachian coal mining community.
The analysis is compelling. Power is portrayed here as a shaping force, capable of producing its own legitimacy - whether it be wielded by mine owners, absentee corporations, local elites, or even union bosses. Gaventa goes to great lengths to demonstrate how the miners' acceptance of their miserable lot is not a natural or inevitable state of affairs, but rather one imposed and maintained through the operation of power.
To quote some of his conclusion: "...the total impact of a power relationship is more than the sum of its parts. Power serves to create power. Powerlessness serves to re-enforce powerlessness. Power relationships, once established, are self-sustaining."
This is a compelling book with analysis which remains relevant 30 years after it was first written. The particular circumstances of the miners may have changed since then, but the overall points being made about power, powerlessness, and the maintenance of inequality is a lesson for us still.
March 12, 2010
A fascinating and useful way to look at power--how it is formed and how it impacts those who do not have any. As any organizer, I have long struggled with my anger at other people's blame of the poor for apathy or ignorance, this is a framework to more critically think through quiescence and its many levels. It is clearly much grounded in practice and the daily lives of individuals (you'd know that even without knowing Gaventa's role as the director of the New Highlander Center), and also serves as a rather gripping narrative of Appalachia's coal mining town and hollers. It builds on Freire a bit as well...highly recommended.
May 28, 2007
This is a wonderful book that explains why people in an Appalachian coal mining region were unable to break free of the power exerted over them by the mining company and the mining unions. This book is one of the best discussions of political and social power I have ever read; those who have read work on the "third face of power" will find this book extremely interesting and useful. I will write more about this when I have time, but I can say this: this is one of the most interesting books I read during my graduate school career.
May 26, 2021
Gaventa's theory of the 3 dimensions of power is essential reading for anyone working in a community with stark inequality and power imbalance. He applies this theory in a case study of an Appalachian mining town, but it can be applied almost anywhere.
This book has me thinking about how power functions to keep people powerless and quiescent despite living under oppressive conditions. Honestly, this book feels like my Bible. Something I'll be returning to again and again when needed.
This book has me thinking about how power functions to keep people powerless and quiescent despite living under oppressive conditions. Honestly, this book feels like my Bible. Something I'll be returning to again and again when needed.
June 14, 2007
This book changed my whole world view when it came to politics. It had a profound effect on me, giving me a better idea of who I was, where I came from and what created the situation of the community around me. In addition to giving me tools to understand what had happened and was happening, it gave me the first suggestions of the kind of things needed to do to change things. Most importantly, that understanding also gave me something very important... hope.
September 13, 2025
The class for which I read this book was a bit of a struggle, but damn, this book was a high point. Absolutely loved it. I think Gaventa went a little far in his concept of brainwashing, but the analysis of the third dimension of power was masterful. This is definitely a favorite work in the field of political science that I've ever read.
September 5, 2021
This was a second read of this book, with quite a few years between the first and it read even better this time! I love how Gaventa incorporates theory and behavior, political science and journalism, and intensely specific case studies and comparisons that demonstrate his points. The three types of power are an incredible model, especially when applied in such a way that challenge BOTH consensus OR debate within a given community. There are so many writers who illuminate social change, but so few who ask why rebellion *doesn't* happen in equally marginalized communities (without engaging in victim blaming or gaslighting, in other words, arguing that things must not be so bad). I think this is an essential book in the social movement canon.
December 23, 2022
A classic for a reason. Gaventa illustrates how apparent political apathy in this region of Appalachia - rather than being rooted in communities' inadequacies - actually results from deliberately developed relationships of dependency by coal corporations, systematic quelling of resistance by powerful local and nonlocal elites, and consistent illustrations of how political systems do not work for the most vulnerable. Includes some particularly compelling discussions of absentee corporate land ownership as well.
February 19, 2019
I read this in a Political Sociology graduate seminar. It is a great piece on the dynamics of power in society. It presents an excellent quality analysis and development of social theory concepts, and is also a well-written historical account of a truly shocking period in US history. This one has really stuck with me through the years.
December 29, 2021
a fascinating read that had me asking questions of economics and history and abuse of power. —
“To ask not why rebellion occurs in a ‘democracy’ but why, in the face of massive inequalities, it does not.”
“To ask not why rebellion occurs in a ‘democracy’ but why, in the face of massive inequalities, it does not.”
September 15, 2017
lacks any real discussion of race (or even why race is not important)
June 3, 2018
My first solid understandings of unions and where they're effective...and necessary.
February 20, 2020
The second face of power is placing barriers to participation, and the third face of power is molding ideology to prevent challenges from even being conceived. Interesting history of coal unionism including John L. Lewis and Jock Yablonski. Ralph Nader pops up, as does Paulo Freire.
August 23, 2019
i like it
February 28, 2008
Gaventa performs well at providing an academic analysis of the development and maintenance of power relationships in the Appalachian region. With equal skill, he provides a qualitative history of the relevant aspects of the region, such as they way in which capital based in London and New York inserted proxies in to the local political and cultural institutions to maintain their control of the region's resources.
The nature of capital's control over property is nothing new. Gaventa is most poignant when he outlines the way in which cultural stereotypes of hill people have been, and remain, useful in deflecting attention from injustice in the region.
That said, for those not interested in social research methodology (congratulations, you probably can form meaningful relationships) the later chapters will be more enjoyable and don't necessarily require the methodological buildup of the early chapters.
The nature of capital's control over property is nothing new. Gaventa is most poignant when he outlines the way in which cultural stereotypes of hill people have been, and remain, useful in deflecting attention from injustice in the region.
That said, for those not interested in social research methodology (congratulations, you probably can form meaningful relationships) the later chapters will be more enjoyable and don't necessarily require the methodological buildup of the early chapters.
February 21, 2008
This book was assigned reading in a course on Political Culture. Many of the books were impenetrable (but then again I am positivist) but several of the books were quite good. And the one that made the biggest impression on me was this one. Gaventa is a passionate and lucid writer, and this book--about the powerlessness of Appalachian coal miners vis a vis both the coal company and their union--is one of the finest explanations of the subtle "third face of power" that is more likely to characterized power relations in liberal democracies than are typical coercive types of power (the "two faces" commonly discussed). This book helps us explain not only why some people are powerless, but how their very powerlessness reinforces their inability to gain some power against those who limit their actions. A remarkable and readable work of social science.
April 26, 2012
"Rebellion, to be successful, must both confront power and overcome the accumulated effects of powerlessness."
Yeah. That.
This book doesn't solve anything -- the quote above might be the closest you get to a "what next" payoff -- but that's not the point. The point is that people who are poor and uneducated are not stupid or weak. It really tried to set out what you know is true if you work in poverty realms at all -- that each aspect of poverty and powerlessness reinforces every other aspect. And that for the powerful to maintain power takes not a lot of effort.
It's not just the powerful setting the agenda. It's them writing the language the agenda's written in.
Yeah. That.
This book doesn't solve anything -- the quote above might be the closest you get to a "what next" payoff -- but that's not the point. The point is that people who are poor and uneducated are not stupid or weak. It really tried to set out what you know is true if you work in poverty realms at all -- that each aspect of poverty and powerlessness reinforces every other aspect. And that for the powerful to maintain power takes not a lot of effort.
It's not just the powerful setting the agenda. It's them writing the language the agenda's written in.
Read
March 1, 2024About the three dimensions of power, expanded to include not only the action of the powerful but also the non-action of the powerless, as seen in coal mining towns in Appalachia.
First - overt; coercive; dependency relationships such as employer-employee
Second - control of the agenda and discourse; what even gets talked about; keeps people atomized and thinking they're the only one thinking a certain way
Third - assimilation/identification with the goals of the powerful; internalization of powerlessness
I find the second dimension most interesting personally, but Gaventa is very good at showing how all three interact with one another to create what he calls hegemony.
First - overt; coercive; dependency relationships such as employer-employee
Second - control of the agenda and discourse; what even gets talked about; keeps people atomized and thinking they're the only one thinking a certain way
Third - assimilation/identification with the goals of the powerful; internalization of powerlessness
I find the second dimension most interesting personally, but Gaventa is very good at showing how all three interact with one another to create what he calls hegemony.
May 6, 2008
This was such an interesting perspective on how the people who have power keep it, even when they don't have numbers or moral authority on their side. Gaventa shows how the powerful dominate the powerless not just through sheer force, but by actually using the strengths of the powerless (in this case, their strong family loyalties and attachments to the region) against them. It's dense, but very worth reading, especially during an election year.
December 9, 2016
Thought about this book today while reading (another) article on Trump and the working class. Read this book for a graduate-level political theory course (for which I was not at all qualified to take as an undergrad) and it was definitely one of the more standout books on social and political authority.
February 16, 2014
Compassionate and thought-provoking account of the interlocking nature of power and powerlessness. it has strong theory, creative methodology, and real respect and concern for the people at the center of the study.
August 23, 2008
Read this for a Political Science senior seminar on Power in Politics. Really enjoyed the class and this book fit the material nicely as a case study.
February 14, 2010
An effort to get an understanding of quiescence among exploited populations. Why are Americans so apolitical when they have every reason to rebel?
May 31, 2012
Taught me fancy words to describe power dynamics between the oppressed and the oppressor.
November 19, 2017
Great, ultimately uplifting, study of power.
September 24, 2007
A classic in Appalachian studies.
February 28, 2008
Need to re-read this as a "real" grown-up
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews