Superiority and Subordination as Subject-Matter of Sociology

"Superiority and Subordination as Subject-Matter of Sociology" is an essay by the German Sociologist, philosopher and critic, Georg Simmel. In it, he shows that domination does not lie in the unilateral imposition of the superordinate's will upon the subordinate but that it involves reciprocal action. What appears to be the exercise of absolute power by some and the acquiescence by others is deceptive. Power "conceals an interaction, an exchange . . . . which transforms the pure one-sidedness of superordination and subordination into a sociological form." Thus, the superordinate's action cannot be understood without reference to the subordinate, and vice versa. The action of one can only be analyzed by reference to the action of others, since the two are part of a system of interaction that constrains both.