A philosophical question.

[quarrel]

Is there any real difference between physically, or by way of threat, forcing someone to do something they don't want to and coercing or negotiating them into it? Should there be? I mean, the net result is the same...

Comments

[donnaidh-sidhe.livejournal.com]

Well, if you're physically forcing someone to do something they don't want to do, and you're much stronger than they are, they won't have a chance of resisting successfully, right? Words at least give them the option to escape. Of course, I've been in situations where the sheer pressure--whether from others, or from a sheepish feeling of obligation--has been enough to get me to do something I really didn't want to do; however, I wouldn't go to say that that is forcing, because I always had/have the option to say "screw this, I'm going home". Besides, "negotiating" someone into doing something they don't want to do basically involves (at least for long enough to carry out the action) convincing them that they want to do it,or convincing them that they should do it for one reason or another. That's the crucial difference between physical force and "negotiation", the decision by the one being forced to do something; one who is overpowered rarely has the chance to make that decision.