{"title":"Arbitrary Power: Caricature and Concept","authors":"Farrah Ahmed","doi":"10.1007/s10982-024-09509-0","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Arbitrary power is often understood as bearing some kind of relation to tyrannical rule, a relation that is thought to explain why arbitrary power is objectionable. But what is tyrannical rule? What precisely is the relationship between arbitrary power and tyranny? Why (if at all) is arbitrary power objectionable? Arbitrary power, this paper argues, is best understood through the figure of the tyrant. The figure of the tyrant is a caricature with stock character traits, usually of a disliked other, who is, or is thought to be, powerful. Arbitrary power, the paper argues, is power that is constituted to express, or enable the expression of, caricatured tyrannical traits. Arbitrary power is bad or objectionable (if and when it is) for mimetic reasons. Understanding arbitrary power in this way allows us to see problems with how it is deployed, understood and communicated and has advantages over standard accounts.</p>","PeriodicalId":51702,"journal":{"name":"Law and Philosophy","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8000,"publicationDate":"2024-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Law and Philosophy","FirstCategoryId":"98","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10982-024-09509-0","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"ETHICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Arbitrary power is often understood as bearing some kind of relation to tyrannical rule, a relation that is thought to explain why arbitrary power is objectionable. But what is tyrannical rule? What precisely is the relationship between arbitrary power and tyranny? Why (if at all) is arbitrary power objectionable? Arbitrary power, this paper argues, is best understood through the figure of the tyrant. The figure of the tyrant is a caricature with stock character traits, usually of a disliked other, who is, or is thought to be, powerful. Arbitrary power, the paper argues, is power that is constituted to express, or enable the expression of, caricatured tyrannical traits. Arbitrary power is bad or objectionable (if and when it is) for mimetic reasons. Understanding arbitrary power in this way allows us to see problems with how it is deployed, understood and communicated and has advantages over standard accounts.
期刊介绍:
Law and Philosophy is a forum for the publication of work in law and philosophy which is of common interest to members of the two disciplines of jurisprudence and legal philosophy. It is open to all approaches in both fields and to work in any of the major legal traditions - common law, civil law, or the socialist tradition. The editors of Law and Philosophy encourage papers which exhibit philosophical reflection on the law informed by a knowledge of the law, and legal analysis informed by philosophical methods and principles.