Horses Of God

Question 1

The violence triangle.

Answer 1

• Johan Galtung distinguishes between three types of violence: direct violence (visible aspect of violence), cultural violence (invisible) and structural violence (invisible). He calls it the “triangle of violence”.
• Direct Violence: is a visible kind of violence where there is a perpetrator and a victim, it can be of a physical or psychological nature. Some examples of direct violence are: assult, murder, bullying, discrimination, physical or phycological abuse, turtore, etc.
• Structural Violence: is a systematic kind of violence where structures prevent a certain group from basic needs. Structural violence is more of an invisible force formed by these structures, unlike direct violence where there is a perpetrator. Some examples of structural violence are: poverty, degrading living conditions, limited access to education and healthcare, unjust social conditions, etc.
• Cultural violence: refers to the social norms or cultural traditions that legitimize and normalize the use of direct or structural violence. Some examples of cultural violence are: sexism, fascism, islamophobia, racism, etc.
• Galtung explains how the word “peace” is sometimes used inappropriately to indicate that the violence is over when it’s not. This is done either by naive people who confuse the absence of direct violence for a state of peace or those who fully know this and refuse to work towards achieving that state of peace. In these situations the word “peace”, as Galtung describes it, becomes “a very effective peace-blocker.”
• Galtung explains that direct violence, whether verbal or physical, does not occur in a vacuum but is rather a consequence of cultural and structural violence which he describes as the “roots” for direct violence.
• Galtung dismissed the notion of violence being a human nature, he explains that violence is a potential within human nature, just like love is. This explains why cultural and structural violence might lead to the realization of this potential.
  To further clarify his point, Galtung gives the example of sexual activity and eating which are similar in every part of the world, unlike violence which can vary depending on the culture.
• Galtung expresses that “the violence triangle has built-in vicious cycles”. He explains that direct violence not only leads to visible effects (killed, injured, displaced, material damages…) but also invisible effects which are the reinforcement of structural and cultural violence that end up leading to more direct violence.
  Gultang goes on to further explain that once direct violence occurs, it pushes “the losers” to persue revenge due to the resentment and hatred they feel towards “the winners” who on the other side persue more glory and power, leading to the reinforcement of cultural and structural violence.

Question 2

Horizontal structural violence and vertical structural violence.

Answer 2

• Gultang distinguished between two types of structural violence which are a consequence of geographical fragmentation:
• Horizontal structural violence: refers to the violence between different regions or groups within a nation-state. The after effects of colonization are apparent throughout the novel which can be seen as the biggest example of Horizontal structural violence. Instances such as Yachine’s amazment at “the satanic paradise of Anfa” and his description of the Genna Inn as “paradise” show the severity of social hierarchies that turned Sidi Moumen into a pit of despair. It was almost as if they lived in completely different worlds, that’s how different their realities were from the privileged. The constant feeling of alienation and inferiority that characters had in contrast to “the other world” is also highlighted through the novel, when Yachine mentions how France sells its buses to Morocco“after a lifetime of good and loyal service in the motherland” we can really see how lasting is the impact of horizontal structural violence.
• Vertical structural violence: This type of violence is probably the one with the most presence in the novel, as it is the reason why places like Sidi Moumen exist and why its people have to live in such dehumanizing conditions. In Sidi Moumen, there is no law to protect them, several characters died with no justice system to avenge them. No aid ever reaches them, only trash trucks. It is a place where every possible system failed them, they have to live in despair alienated from the privileged so they “wouldn’t pollute this elegant environment.”