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PSIR Optional PYQ Solutions · Model answer

Comment in 150 words: “Power is never the property of an individual; it belongs to a group and remains in existence only so long as the group keeps together.” (Hannah Arendt)

  • UPSC 2014
  • 10 marks
  • Concept of Power, Hegemony, Ideology and Legitimacy

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The sentence comes verbatim from Hannah Arendt's On Violence (1970). It follows her definition: power corresponds to the human ability not just to act but to act in concert. Written against the 1960s romance of violence and the command-obedience tradition of Max Weber, it recasts power as a collective capacity (power-to) rather than domination (power-over).

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PSIR Optional PYQ Solutions

PSIR Optional PYQ Solutions

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