Does a Mugger Dominate? Episodic Power and the Structural Dimension of Domination

My argument is a contribution to neo‐republican debates on the concept of domination. I focus on a power‐theoretic analysis of the structural dimension of domination. I do not address the merits of non‐domination as a conception of freedom (though I briefly highlight implications of my argument for critics of Pettit’s theory of freedom in Section III). Neither do I provide a full account of domination. My aim is limited: I will show that domination, as conceived of in neo‐republican terms, is best interpreted as a structurally constituted form of power. This holds for both interpersonal and systemic domination. While this argument contributes to the recent debate on ‘structural domination’, my point is not that neo‐republicans fail to take structures seriously. Rather, I argue that because of its structural dimension, domination should be kept distinct from interactional, opportunistic forms of power.