Re: Coercion
Robin Harwood (HARWOOD who-is-at UConnVM.UConn.Edu)
Thu, 18 Apr 96 12:03:52 EDT
Things have been very busy this week, and I haven't had time to respond
as I would like to the various interesting threads. However, just a
thought before I have to rush off: I'm struck by the turn the
conversation is taking around the term, "coercion." It is certainly
true that power is unevenly distributed in society, as well as in
the "mini-societies" of group settings. But I think I'm beginning
to hear the word "coercion" being used in such a way that it's
viewed as the opposite of free will and individual autonomy; a
child or other person who is given any guidelines or behavioral limits
is described as being "coerced", and the fear arises that this will
interfere with the process of free engagement presumed to be necessary
to learning. If coercion means freedom from others' guidelines
or behavioral limits, then I think we are pitting the individual
against the group in culturally constructed ways. Everytime we
interact with another person, we follow norms and expectations regarding
what constitutes appropriate behavior. At some point in our lives,
we LEARN these norms and expectations--perhaps that means that we
"appropriate" them in a "transformative" way--but we do nonetheless
learn them, are influenced by them, and ultimately abide by them to
a greater or lesser extent. Is this coercion? It seems then that
we are in danger of calling any expectation that another person lays
on us "coercion"--which seems awfully close to calling culture
itself "coercive." What do we really mean when we start talking
about the coercion of the classroom? Yes, there is unequal power--
but can all classroom expectations be considered "coercive"?
Robin