Identity and Violence: The Violence of Illusion with Amartya Sen

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen is widely recognized for his ability to join economics and philosophy, reflected in his work through ethics and a sense of common humanity. In this Hitchcock Lecture from UC Berkeley he explores the violence of illusion. Series: UC Berkeley Graduate Council Lectures [5/2005] [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 9459]

[@mohanasundarammuthusamy912]

I read " Idendity and Violence a book by Sen 7years back and now listening his lecture has opened new insights to understand in a better way. In fact I used to refer his book to my friends like Ilango, Ilango m.s. and my elder brother Kamaraj often. Now it is gives me a better perception. A brilliant mind and wonderful expressions. Feel proud of him being an Indian. Mohanasundaram Uppidamangalam, Karur Tamil Nadu India.

[@rickjack78]

With a brilliant mind like Mr. Sen's, I was hoping that he would go beyond pointing out this empirical reality, that's been pointed out many, many times over many decades in the social sciences and humanities. He has the ability to look at the social, material, and economic processes that cause people to switch identities multiple times every, day. What we need is a concrete understanding of monetary and power benefits of some people to push doctrines of identity politics for their own gain.

[@trinidadraj152]

People are not money.

[@peterchen-ef7md]

A giant thinker!

[@DrZhivaVideos]

Highly analytical and thoughtprovoking

[@rkt81]

Who all are watching in 2023, and can relate to the instigator's of 2020 and 2021. The kind of narratives and hate speeches to discriminate based on health procedure choices. How mandates were forced on people making people lose jobs and incomes to feed own family.

[@flowewritharoma]

thanks for uploading this awesome speech!

[@jaydevjana4402]

T7

[@MatthewJohnFaunce]

At 51:00 “My position isn’t so much that we shouldn’t classify people-I mean, classification is the basis of almost all kinds of knowledge, we know, categorization-it’s the insistence on one unique categorization. Even religious classification is an important classification. When it becomes difficult is when it preempts every other form of classification. So really, I’m not asking for non-classification; I’m asking for more classification-many, many, many, many more. … [T]he hope for peace in the world doesn’t lie primarily in denying that people are different, but to recognize that they’re differently different, and there are a great many different ways in which people could be seen. And it’s the plurality of our division which ultimately, I think, is a source of stability and peace.”

[@papan2012]

Someone disliked this lecture !!! Must be some fundamentalist ???

[@HipHopLived]

Any genuinely religious person would put their religious identity first. Also applies to the arguments of Edward Said.

[@freechild19]

Inspiring lecture. Is it possible to upload the lecture on the second day? Thank you!

[@vineetgera9212]

Dworkin's equality of resources

[@PB-hf9of]

Is there any other way to be a Muslim without being Islamic? Only way if you stop reading the Islamic scriptures, Dr Sen can understand this sectarian idea is useless because he has been given the opportunity to be educated with modern education, what would have happened if he had been educated in a Madrasa of Pakistan?

[@harshadeepbiswas846]

Good argument.

[@ujan9837]

I think that there are elements within every culture which opens up to its own outside. This passage is instutitionalized in the west throught what you call modern education. But those passages very much remain, albeit imperceptibly, in other cultures.

[@KrishnaDas-bl9kr]

English a ja.bhujhi tate attention bare.kintu thik thak bodhgomyo hoy na .

[@kimfreeborn]

This lecture seems so out of touch with Western Identity politics in 2023. Today National boundaries and Civilization itself has come into dispute. On the other hand the double edge sword of identity is more profound with the multiplication of identities. The multiplication of identities as a left wing resource for political power has heightened violence rather than ameliorating it. It relies heavily on what he calls foggy history based more on pretext than actual historical context. Inclusion as an incentive structure has become an opportunity to take offence and set the terms of inclusion: a moral extortion. Social cohesion has itself been marginalized by minority elites at every level pulling in every direction. Sen's project of multiplied identities has further engrained and variated grievance culture and discontent.