Violence as a Political Project

 Violence as a Political Project

Power, powerlessness—and our responsibility to act

There are times when violence no longer feels distant. It appears closer—more ordinary—almost woven into everyday life.

This reflection grows out of such a concern.

Inspired by Hannah Arendt, John Lundstøl, and others, I want to suggest something simple, yet demanding:

Violence is not only an individual problem.
It is also a political one.

 

When violence becomes culture

I recall the debate around Crash. Some cinemas refused to show it. Others insisted it must be shown in the name of freedom.

The disagreement pointed to something deeper:

Where does critique end—and where does fascination begin?

Violence is not only something we do.
It is also something we imagine.

And what we repeatedly imagine, we may slowly begin to accept.

 

A violent inheritance

History reminds us that violence is not an exception.

The last centuries have brought war, extermination, and systematic destruction on a massive scale—often carried out by ordinary people within organized systems.

This is perhaps the most unsettling truth:

Violence is human.

And yet, it remains something we must continuously resist and understand.

 

From lifestyle to social suffering

In postwar Norway, we learned that political action could change harmful patterns. Lifestyle diseases were addressed through laws, campaigns, and collective effort.

Something worked.

Today, we face something different:

• violence
• abuse
• social fragmentation

Even in a peaceful society, many children grow up with neglect, instability, or fear.

These are not isolated problems.

They reflect something in the way we live togethe

 

Power and violence

Here, Hannah Arendt offers a crucial distinction:

Power and violence are not the same.

Power arises when people act together.
Violence, by contrast, is instrumental—it relies more on tools than on people.

And the difference matters:

Where power is present, violence becomes unnecessary.
Where violence dominates, it often reveals powerlessness.

 

When action disappears

We often describe modern society as free. Yet many experience something else: a loss of influence over their own lives.

When the ability to act is weakened, something can take its place.

Violence.

Not always in dramatic forms—but in everyday life, in language, in relations.

Violence becomes a distorted form of action.

 

A different response

Some years ago, young people attempted to burn the home of an immigrant family in a Norwegian municipality.

The response could have been limited to punishment.

Instead, the mayor invited the community to gather. People came. They spoke. They listened. They took responsibility together.

Something changed.

This is power in its most meaningful sense:

People acting together.

No violence was needed—because power had been restored.

 

Rage—and the possibility of change

Violence often grows out of rage.

But rage is not simply irrational. It arises when people experience that something is wrong—and could be changed—but is not.

This makes violence a political question.

If we want to reduce it, we must take seriously the conditions that produce it:

• exclusion
• humiliation
• lack of voice

Control and punishment alone are not enough.

What matters is whether people experience themselves as actors in their own lives.

 

A closing reflection

In my years in child welfare, I have often seen that violence does not grow from strength, but from vulnerability.

And I have seen something else:

When people are met with dignity—and given the possibility to act—something shifts.

Perhaps this is where practical philosophy begins.

Not in abstract answers,
but in a simple question:

How do we create a society where people can act—without needing violence?

 

References

Arendt, H. (1970). On violence. Harcourt, Brace & World.
Lundstøl, J. (1992). Den autoritative mann. Universitetsforlaget.
Skjørten, K. (1994). Voldsbilder i hverdagslivet. Universitetsforlaget.
Storr, A. (1968). Human destructiveness. Penguin.

I have written the text and ChatAI/GPT has tightened it slightly for me and also made the illustrations.