Power and Knowledge free essay sample

This paper analyzes three philosophers theories on the power of knowledge. This paper examines the philosophies of Plato, Nietzsche and Marx, with respect to the relationship between power and knowledge. It discusses the question of who should control knowledge and disseminate it in society, the faculty of reason and justifications for certain concepts of power. The relation between Power and Knowledge is indispensable, it is very often that Knowledge is had by some and others do action. Knowledge without action makes things static, it becomes of no use and action without knowledge leads to nowhere. Action is the way, in which knowledge progresses, to the good or to the detriment of people, societies and the future. These actions have always given way to some sort of power structure. What is in our power to do, is to analyze the social practices in operation within our society. The more we gain knowledge of things the more powerful we become. We will write a custom essay sample on Power and Knowledge or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page As the human beings gained knowledge of things in the course of history, about the world and about themselves, they gradually gained control of things. But generally knowledge of certain things has always resulted in using that knowledge to gain power and control our others. This can be seen in religion, the knowledge about god, and other doctrines of religion has been used by people who claim to have knowledge of the absolute to oppress and gain control over the masses in the history of human civilization. Where ever there is knowledge there has to have power. In this paper I will examine the issues which arise as a result of the relationship between knowledge and power and specifically to the aspect as to who should control knowledge and disseminate it in society. Of course power has always been exercised in different political and social practices, to analyze the operations of social practices in our society, the relationship between the faculty of reason and the justification of certain concepts that work within our society. The fact that the faculty of reason is also a social practices and has been used to justify many power relationships. In our society the thirst for abstract knowledge first began with the ancient Greeks, the first philosophers who were the lovers of wisdom or knowledge and knowledge for them was the search for truth.