Foucault Flashcards
What was the main critique in Foucault’s work?
Foucault critiqued traditional doctrines and explored how societal norms are constructed.
How does Foucault view power in society?
Power is not static or held by institutions but is a mobile, ever-present force in all human relationships.
What does Foucault explore regarding normal and abnormal?
He explores how relationships shape what is considered normal or abnormal and how these concepts are maintained.
What is “problematisation” in Foucault’s theory?
It is a method starting with questions from lived experiences rather than pre-existing doctrines.
How does problematisation differ from polemics?
Problematisation uses doctrines as a starting point for broader understanding, while polemics approach issues from a single, doctrine-based perspective.
How does Foucault define discourse?
Discourse consists of “rules governing the production of statements in a given empirical field at a given time.”
What role does discourse play in shaping norms?
Discourse determines what can be said or thought within a context, influencing social norms and categories.
What is the “archaeology of knowledge”?
A methodology for studying the history of discourse by analyzing subject positions, theoretical objects, and institutional domains.
What are the three elements analyzed in the archaeology of knowledge?
Subject position (who speaks and from what positions), theoretical objects (concepts like madness), and institutional domains (e.g., prisons, hospitals).
How did views on madness change during the Middle Ages and Renaissance?
Madness was seen as a human phenomenon with a relation to truth.
How was madness perceived during the Enlightenment (Classical Age)?
Madness was viewed as a denial of reason, leading to the confinement of the “unreasonable.”
How did modern views on madness differ?
Madness became a therapeutic challenge aimed at creating ‘normal’ and obedient citizens.
What was Foucault’s critique of modern views on madness?
He argued that madness challenges normality and that normality should not be the only standard for evaluating madness.
What is “disciplinary power”?
A form of power that operates through mechanisms like hierarchical observation, normalizing judgments, and examinations.
What is hierarchical observation in disciplinary power?
It involves structures like the panopticon to ensure constant surveillance, inducing self-regulation.
What is the function of the panopticon in disciplinary power?
It creates a state of conscious and permanent visibility so that power operates automatically.
What are “normalizing judgments”?
Establishing norms to define acceptable and unacceptable behavior, creating a binary of normal versus abnormal.
How are examinations used in disciplinary power?
Examinations assess and categorize individuals, producing knowledge and reinforcing power structures.
Where does disciplinary power operate beyond prisons?
It operates in schools, factories, and other institutions to produce docile and predictable individuals.
What is the “power/knowledge nexus”?
The idea that power and knowledge are interdependent; producing knowledge is an exercise of power, and power influences what is considered knowledge.
What are the three types of power identified by Foucault?
Sovereign power (violence and deduction), disciplinary power (surveillance and normalization), and bio-power (population management).
What characterizes sovereign power?
Sovereign power is associated with rulers and involves violence and deduction.
What is bio-power?
Bio-power manages populations through administration, statistics, and health measures, focusing on improving population life.
How does bio-power operate in modern states?
Through biopolitics, which seeks to optimize health and behavior management across populations.
What is “governmentality”?
Governmentality refers to the reflection on the best way to govern, structuring the possible fields of action for individuals.
What are examples of governmentality in practice?
Public health measures and programs compelling individuals to manage their own bodies and behavior according to specific norms.
How does Foucault view power in human relationships?
Power is present in all relationships and is not inherently evil; it can be resisted and questioned.
What did Foucault believe about human nature and subjectivity?
He rejected the idea of universal human nature or subjectivity, seeing individuals as shaped by power relations.
How can power relations transform into domination?
Power relations become domination when they are blocked and lose their mobility and reversibility.
