Power in Construction of Law Essay -- Politics Political Science

How does power contribute to the construction of law, both on the books and in action? Power, the ability to influence others and the course of events, affects laws and shapes cultural beliefs in society. In our society, power is said to be equally distributed throughout the people, and there is a democratic belief that collective action is able to create change. However, collective power is heavily influenced by the wealthy. Those with power have the resources to influence the creation and termination of law, both on the books and in action. Power, ultimately controlled by the wealthy and elite, shapes the construction of laws to benefit them and their values, in order to maintain the dichotomy between themselves and the less powerful. While some of the more obvious, tangible foundations of power include money, capital and property, Galanter discusses additional aspects of power in its definition and its benefits. Galanter explains the differences between the â€Å"haves†, or the repeat players, and the â€Å"have-nots†, or the one-shotters. In this analogy, the former is equivalent to the powerful, and the latter to the powerless. The repeat players, according to Galanter, have the advantage because they know the rules, have previous experience, have both legal and financial resources, and have much less to lose than the one-shotters. All of these assets together demonstrate the â€Å"superior opportunities† (Galanter 82) of the powerful repeat players over the powerless. Galanter explains, â€Å"To the extent that rules are evenhanded or favor the ‘have-nots’, the limited resources for their implementation will be allocated, I have argued, so as to give greater effect to those rules which protect and promote the tangible inte... ...John J. Bonsignore, Ethan Katsh, D'errico Peter, Ronald M. Pipkin, Stephen Arons, and Janet Rifkin. Ed. Katherine Meisenheimer. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. 81-89. Hilbink, Thomas. â€Å"Who makes the law? The people? Which people?† Legal Studies 250: Introduction to Legal Studies. Herter Hall, Amherst. 6 Feb. 2007. Hilbink, Thomas. â€Å"Who makes the law? To what extent is law shaped by those in power?† Legal Studies 250: Introduction to Legal Studies. Herter Hall, Amherst. 8 Feb. 2007. MacKinnon, Catherine. â€Å"A Rally against Rape.† Introduction to Legal Studies. Ed. Thomas Hilbink. 2007. 81-84. "Proposition 215: the Compassionate Use Act of 1996." Before the Law. Comp. John J. Bonsignore, Ethan Katsh, D'errico Peter, Ronald M. Pipkin, Stephen Arons, and Janet Rifkin. Ed. Katherine Meisenheimer. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. 172-173. Power in Construction of Law Essay -- Politics Political Science How does power contribute to the construction of law, both on the books and in action? Power, the ability to influence others and the course of events, affects laws and shapes cultural beliefs in society. In our society, power is said to be equally distributed throughout the people, and there is a democratic belief that collective action is able to create change. However, collective power is heavily influenced by the wealthy. Those with power have the resources to influence the creation and termination of law, both on the books and in action. Power, ultimately controlled by the wealthy and elite, shapes the construction of laws to benefit them and their values, in order to maintain the dichotomy between themselves and the less powerful. While some of the more obvious, tangible foundations of power include money, capital and property, Galanter discusses additional aspects of power in its definition and its benefits. Galanter explains the differences between the â€Å"haves†, or the repeat players, and the â€Å"have-nots†, or the one-shotters. In this analogy, the former is equivalent to the powerful, and the latter to the powerless. The repeat players, according to Galanter, have the advantage because they know the rules, have previous experience, have both legal and financial resources, and have much less to lose than the one-shotters. All of these assets together demonstrate the â€Å"superior opportunities† (Galanter 82) of the powerful repeat players over the powerless. Galanter explains, â€Å"To the extent that rules are evenhanded or favor the ‘have-nots’, the limited resources for their implementation will be allocated, I have argued, so as to give greater effect to those rules which protect and promote the tangible inte... ...John J. Bonsignore, Ethan Katsh, D'errico Peter, Ronald M. Pipkin, Stephen Arons, and Janet Rifkin. Ed. Katherine Meisenheimer. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. 81-89. Hilbink, Thomas. â€Å"Who makes the law? The people? Which people?† Legal Studies 250: Introduction to Legal Studies. Herter Hall, Amherst. 6 Feb. 2007. Hilbink, Thomas. â€Å"Who makes the law? To what extent is law shaped by those in power?† Legal Studies 250: Introduction to Legal Studies. Herter Hall, Amherst. 8 Feb. 2007. MacKinnon, Catherine. â€Å"A Rally against Rape.† Introduction to Legal Studies. Ed. Thomas Hilbink. 2007. 81-84. "Proposition 215: the Compassionate Use Act of 1996." Before the Law. Comp. John J. Bonsignore, Ethan Katsh, D'errico Peter, Ronald M. Pipkin, Stephen Arons, and Janet Rifkin. Ed. Katherine Meisenheimer. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. 172-173.