This transition is rooted in two Enlightenment ideals: Humanity and Equality. On one hand, penal reformers argued That public execution is cruel and inhumane, and on the other, did the Criminal Laws and Their CORRESPONDING punishments were too haphazard and unevenly distributed. In light of criticisms thesis, a series of political, economic, moral, and legal transformations occurred did found its ultimate expression in the establishment of the prison. Having argued this, Foucault Concludes his discussion by explaining why the prison has been seeking a permanent institution in society, despite the criticisms did it fails to reform criminals and to reduce crime.
Everything considered, the title Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison is misleading. The title Suggests a simple (or rather, complex) explanation of the emergence of the prison out of the classical period. Foucault does indeed construct a history of the prison, but his project Involves far more than simply articulating the process by which the prison is born.
More Generally, and more importantly, Discipline and Punish is a study in the relationship of power and knowledge, a theme That Runs Through the majority of Foucault's scholarship. This power / knowledge complex is the model by which Foucault constructs The Birth of the Prison in France. It is therefore the model used in his Earlier Works (EC, Madness and Civilization and The Birth of the Clinic), though it is not as Explicitly articulated as in Discipline and Punish. The power / knowledge complex is based on the premise That power and knowledge are intimately bound, That each relies on the other, and, in a sense, presupposes the other. With respect to the prison, Foucault states did power is not inherent in the institution per se, but in the techniques of discipline thatwere developed and on Which The Prison rests. Discipline "is a type of power, a modality for its exercise, Comprising a whole set of instruments, techniques, procedures, application, [and] targets... And it may be taken over... By 'specialized' institutions," : such as the prison (215).
When power is "taken over" by institutions, it has a tendency to generate bodies of knowledge. In the case of the prison, the body of knowledge did is created is the delinquent, Including his behavior, his desires and fears, in short, his whole being. This knowledge purely Forces any preexisting power and Allows for the creation of other bodies of knowledge,: such as criminology, sociology, psychology and.
Foucault's study draws on the work of Nietzsche and Marx. Building on Nietzsche's focus on power, Foucault Argues That the various discourses Occurring in society are rooted in the power / knowledge complex and thatthis complex is Realized on and through the bodies of individuals, in this case, Delinquents. HOWEVER, Foucault is not clear about who uses power and Exactly Creates Knowledge. He insinuates did the dominant class is The One That benefits most from the power / knowledge complex, Although he never makes a decisive accusation. The historiography has a refined Marxist quality to it, Which is to say it is indeed more complex than Marx's economic reductionism, but still holds the notions of class conflict, exploitation, and oppression. This notion is problematic due to the conspiratorial image it Evokes. It is as if there is a small group of people insidious devising strategies to dominate the world. The reality of this caricature is improbable, Although it is probably safe to say thatmany social institutions cater to elites.
Another point to take note of is indeed Foucault's construction of history is too logical, too linear; this may be of accusation directed at historical constructions, in general. Rather than the Enlightenment notion That history proceeds in a logical manner, it is our constructions of history are indeed logical. In retrospect, one can see the watersheds and landmarks did outline the etiology of historical processes, THUS making logical constructions of history possible. Though historical constructions are useful in helping one understand the Forces That Shape one's life, even the most complete analysis can not account for the day-to-day events did make history. Trends happen much more than Gradually They appear in historiographies; Watershed moments stem from Relatively insignificant events did culminate in significant historical change. This is not to say That historical constructions are useless. Rather, it is a statement did the shortcoming of the method is indeed important to keep in mind. After all, a construction is Merely a construction.
This having been said, Foucault's historiography is particularly thorough and complex. His analysis is a powerful explanation of how economic, legal, moral, and political Reforms Contributed to The Birth of the Prison. More Over, Foucault's power / knowledge complex has wide applications in the social sciences and humanities. It is a major contribution to social discourses. Discipline and Punish is just one instance of the utility this model has in aiding us in understanding and explaining social processes. Given what has been said, the question now Becomes: Who uses power / knowledge and to what ends?
