Hello!
Thank you for visiting the PowerMyth Index, a digital garden that compiles my original research and helpful source material for studying social inequity. I initially wanted to connect every scattered bit of info related to inequity (causes, solutions, history, etc.) to synthesize it all in plain language. As it turns out, that's just like... everything. Everything in the world is related to inequity!! How do you categorize everything in the world? Well, what you see now is one attempt.
PowerMyth Machine
Pages on this website are organized and contextualized by the PowerMyth Machine. The Machine is a method of conceptualizing social relations through Power, pulling from a bunch of different theories outlined in the Bibliography.
Essentially, PowerMyth is built around the idea that understanding Power solely as a means for people to dominate each other is super insufficient. Instead...
- Power is a ubiquitous force that determines the boundaries for what every person can or can't do (11. Realms of Freedom).
- When we come together to govern a society, the views and perceptions of some people are more represented than others (12. Dominant Realm).
- That influence is baked into institutions and culture, which maintains the status quo and reinforces exclusion (13. Realm Enforcers).
- Those advantaged with accumulative properties, such as wealth and status, have greater potential to shape boundaries (14. Power Capacitors).
- An eternal process of 15. Boundary Negotiation underpins society to determine what is good, possible, normal, legal, or rational.
You may already be asking "WHO CARES!!!!, abstract theory won't help with practical solutions!!" And I'm right there with you, this would be pointless if it couldn't. Instead, I think it challenges us to rethink whether some of the solutions we're currently fighting for are working.
Fun Disclaimers
I am not a researcher in a bubble of pure science and reason, nor is this Machine intended to be some objectively correct lighthouse for the world's problems. Instead, this Index will be WEIRD AND MESSY FOREVER!!! :O Ideas will keep evolving over time, and the scope for the Machine is potentially infinite, I guess. Expect some pages to be delicately crafted essays while others will just be reference lists for now. And expect new pages to keep popping up all the time.
I don't always feel comfortable with 'unfinished' work out there in the wild, but I think it kind of fits with this project. There shouldn't always be a clear argument; this information is here to help examine things differently and apply it to your own experiences. Plus, there's always more to learn.
Sometime in the future when I get my life together, it would be cool to turn this into a community-driven wiki where anyone can contribute their own ideas and research. In the meantime, if you want to share your thoughts, please contact me at belmontindex@gmail.com!
Getting Started
Great, now you're caught up to speed on the basics. Hooray!! Where you go next is up to you!
...okay look, it'd probably be helpful to at least read Power before anything else. Either way, there's a bunch of hypertext on each page to keep you oriented. No matter where you start or end up, you'll never be lost with unfamiliar concepts. At the end of the day, the best method is the one that keeps you interested!! So maybe just visit the Sitemap and see what you think?
~ Dillon Belmont, 3/20/2026