Is there Background-Power?

Loddo, Olimpia Giuliana

2017-01-01

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Abstract

A web of background social rules plays a part in determining people’s behaviour. But what pushes people to conform to background social rules? How can society exercise power over people? Searle (2010) creates the concept of “background power” to explain the uncodified constraints that, in our everyday life, condition social behaviour. Searle thinks that background power can influence our dressing choices, our conversations, our sexual behaviour and even our political opinions. According to Searle, background power is “a type of a power that is not codified is seldom explicit, and may even be largely unconscious”. However, Searle does not clarify the connection between “background power” and “background social rules”. Besides, he does not explain why people conform to background rules. In this paper I will analyse the concept of background power”, and I will try to demonstrate that the set of phenomena that Searle considers an expression of background power could be a consequence of a web of background deontic (regulative) rules that are often (unconsciously) followed by people in specific social contexts independently of any (background) power exercise.