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Exploring Ideas - Challenging Assumptions.

The Quiet Architecture of Violence:


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Part I: Memory Identity and What We Learn Not to See

We often think of violence as something visible: a war, a riot, a gun. Yet much of the violence shaping our world is quieter—folded into the ways we trade, govern, build institutions, and even convince ourselves we are doing good. My guest today, Guillaume Soto-Mayor, examines how violence becomes part of economic and social life, how it hides behind legality and necessity, and how it continues to shape societies long after the shooting stops.

His book, The Economies of Violence, explores how power and harm intertwine across very different contexts, from human trafficking and forced labour to digital systems and political institutions.

In the first part of our conversation, we identify and unpack different forms of violence in global society. We draw on examples ranging from hidden family histories and colonial legacies, to child abuse, public health, film industries, and political systems. Together, we lay the foundations for understanding how violence and economic life become deeply entangled.

In this episode, we explore:

00:00:00 — Intro: Visible vs. invisible violence 

00:04:55 — How violence operates on both macro and micro levels

00:10:30 — “Quiet” forms of legal and institutional violence 

00:18:15 — How violence becomes tied to identity, self-worth, and belonging 

00:44:20 — Why “just transition” and climate policies often fail to account for violent actors 

00:27:40 — The normalization of gendered, social, and environmental violence 

00:36:35 — What connects protest movements across very different societies 

00:52:10 — Violence as a hidden variable shaping global markets 

01:00:30 — How The Economies of Violence came about 

Links and resources:

  • The Economies of Violence: The Forgotten Variable — Guillaume Soto-Mayor

https://brill.com/display/title/70924 

  • Egregor — a non-profit catalyst for social and environmental justice

https://www.egregor.net/

  • Connect with Guillaume Soto-Mayor

https://www.linkedin.com/in/guillaume-soto-mayor-60416769/ 

  • Freakonomics — Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner

https://freakonomics.com/books/ 

  • The Tyranny of Merit — Michael J. Sandel

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/313112/the-tyranny-of-merit-by-sandel-michael-j/9780141991177 

  • Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil — Hannah Arendt

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/62456/eichmann-in-jerusalem-by-arendt-hannah/9780241552292 

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inSUBSTANTIA
Exploring Ideas - Challenging Assumptions.By Gabor Farkas