The aim of this article is to examine the interrelations between the notions of will, power and desire in Pierres noires : les classes moyennes du salut, a novel by Joseph Malègue (1876-1940), published posthumously in 1958. The analysis, focused on the notion of powerlessness, englobes two main aspects of the problem: the philosophical one (Bergson’s influence on Malègue, in particular that of Les deux sources de la morale et de la religion, 1932), and the socio-historical (the prism of Halévy’s La fin de notables, 1930).

Conspiracy theories are the beliefs that play an important role in individuals’ decision-making, and studies indicate that they also have a significant effect on political behavior. The present study explores the relationships between belief in conspiracy theories, political powerlessness, and political apathy in an Iraqi sample (N =188) from a local community in which they have answered the study questionnaires. Belief in conspiracy theories has been linked to both political powerlessness and political apathy. Further analysis revealed that the relationship between belief in conspiracy theories and political apathy was mediated by political powerlessness. The findings suggest that conspiracy theories related with many political factors, the mediation model explained 30% of the variation in political apathy; other elements appear to contribute to it, also it appears that members of the research community have gravitated toward political apathy as a result of their sense of political powerlessness.