Language is a communication medium for turning a power base into influence. But more than that, the creation of power and its maintenance or change can also occur in and through language. In the present article, we discuss some of the dynamic links between language and power to underscore their relevance to the study of intergroup relations. In particular we address the means by which low-power groups might achieve power, and how those who are in high-power positions might retain and subvert acts of power. In doing this, we counterpose our discussion with research that addresses these same issues from a static and individualistic approach to power. Our central argument is that the latter work lacks theoretical facility for describing and understanding the aforementioned dynamic processes of power, and moreover, that its application may unwittingly serve to reify and cement existing control relationships.
