Subjective and objective violence

Full Answer Section

• • Symbolic violence is the violence that is embedded in language and culture. Examples of symbolic violence include racism, sexism, and homophobia.
• Systemic violence is the most insidious form of violence. It is the violence that we are so accustomed to that we don't even notice it. It is the violence that is built into the fabric of our society.

Žižek argues that subjective violence is often a symptom of objective violence. For example, he argues that the riots in Paris in 2005 were not simply the result of individual criminals, but were also a symptom of the systemic violence of poverty and discrimination. I think Žižek's definition of violence is broad enough to capture the full range of ways in which violence can manifest itself. However, I also think that it is important to distinguish between different forms of violence, as they have different causes and effects. For example, systemic violence is often more difficult to address than subjective violence, as it requires changes to the way that our society is organized. Overall, I think Žižek's definition of violence is a useful tool for understanding the different ways in which violence can manifest itself in our society. It is a reminder that violence is not always as obvious as it seems, and that it can take many different forms.

Sample Answer Slavoj Žižek defines violence in three ways: subjective violence, objective violence, and systemic violence.

• Subjective violence is the most obvious form of violence. It is the physical or psychological harm that one person inflicts on another. Examples of subjective violence include murder, rape, assault, and battery.
• Objective violence is more subtle than subjective violence. It is the violence that is inherent in social structures and systems. There are two kinds of objective violence:
  • Systemic violence is the violence that is caused by the way that our economic and political systems are organized. Examples of systemic violence include poverty, hunger, and homelessness.