Michel Foucault: Difference between revisions
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==Terms== | ==Concept Map== | ||
===Terms=== | |||
[[Michele Foucault]] > {{#ask:[[Is a term::Foucault]]}} | [[Michele Foucault]] > {{#ask:[[Is a term::Foucault]]}} | ||
==Key Figure== | ===Key Figure=== | ||
[[Key Figure]] > {{#ask:[[Is a::key figure]]}} | [[Key Figure]] > {{#ask:[[Is a::key figure]]}} | ||
==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
===Four Technologies=== | |||
Foucault identifies four interrelated “technologies” through which human beings are shaped and governed: technologies of production, which allow us to act upon and transform the material world; technologies of sign systems, which organize meaning through language, symbols, and codes; technologies of power, which direct conduct, objectify subjects, and tie individuals to systems of domination; and technologies of the self, which involve the practices by which individuals work on their own bodies, souls, and behaviours to achieve transformation. These four are not separate spheres but overlapping modalities—constantly combining in different historical contexts to constitute both social order and individual subjectivity.<ref>Foucault, Michele. “Technologies of the Self.” In ''Technologies of the Self'', edited by Luther H Martin, Huck Gutman, and Patrick H Hutton. University of Massachusetts Press, 1988.</ref> | |||
# [[Technologies of Production]]: methods of producing/transformation of things. | |||
# [[Technologies of Sign Systems]]: ways of using signs, meanings, language. | |||
# [[Technologies of Power]]: mechanisms for determining conduct, objectifying subjects. | |||
# [[Technologies of the Self]]: practices that allow individuals to act on themselves to transform identity and being. | |||
Good overview of Foucault's theory | Good overview of Foucault's theory | ||
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXGjEPLJ_e0 | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXGjEPLJ_e0 | ||
== Quotes == | |||
{{template:endstuff}} | "In 1973, Michel Foucault defined himself as a journalist for his attention to the present and philosophy as a practice of ‘radical journalism’ that tries to transform the present reality. In this way, the diagnostic of the present is connected from the outset to a transformative work up against existing power relations that points to reversing the balance between process of subjection and subjectivation."<ref>''udies13'' 13, no. 4 (2006): 81–99; Thomas Friedman, ''The Lexus and the Olive Tree'' (Anchor Books/Doubleday, 2000); Sophie Fuggle et al., eds., ''Foucault and the History of Our Present'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015), p. 1.</ref>{{template:endstuff}} | ||
[[category:terms]] | [[category:terms]] | ||
Latest revision as of 15:46, 30 August 2025
Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was a French philosopher and historian who revolutionized how we understand power, knowledge, and social control. Unlike traditional thinkers who focused on obvious forms of power like government or military force, Foucault examined the subtle, everyday mechanisms that shape how we think, act, and see ourselves, the things that make us into who we believe ourselves to be, and who we actually are.
Concept Map
Terms
Michele Foucault > Archaeological Research, Discourse, Subjugated Knowledge, Technologies of Power, Technologies of the Self
Key Figure
Key Figure > A. L. Kitselman, Abraham Maslow, Albert Einstein, Albert Hofmann, Aldous Huxley, Eugene Ruyle, Jean Anyon, Johan Galtung, John Taylor Gatto, Karl Marx, Louis Althusser, Paulo Freire, Tim Berners-Lee, Timothy Leary, Vannevar Bush, William James
Notes
Four Technologies
Foucault identifies four interrelated “technologies” through which human beings are shaped and governed: technologies of production, which allow us to act upon and transform the material world; technologies of sign systems, which organize meaning through language, symbols, and codes; technologies of power, which direct conduct, objectify subjects, and tie individuals to systems of domination; and technologies of the self, which involve the practices by which individuals work on their own bodies, souls, and behaviours to achieve transformation. These four are not separate spheres but overlapping modalities—constantly combining in different historical contexts to constitute both social order and individual subjectivity.[1]
- Technologies of Production: methods of producing/transformation of things.
- Technologies of Sign Systems: ways of using signs, meanings, language.
- Technologies of Power: mechanisms for determining conduct, objectifying subjects.
- Technologies of the Self: practices that allow individuals to act on themselves to transform identity and being.
Good overview of Foucault's theory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXGjEPLJ_e0
Quotes
"In 1973, Michel Foucault defined himself as a journalist for his attention to the present and philosophy as a practice of ‘radical journalism’ that tries to transform the present reality. In this way, the diagnostic of the present is connected from the outset to a transformative work up against existing power relations that points to reversing the balance between process of subjection and subjectivation."[2]==Citation and Legal== Treat the SpiritWiki as an open-access online monograph or structured textbook. You may freely use information in the SpiritWiki; however, attribution, citation, and/or direct linking are ethically required.
Footnotes
- ↑ Foucault, Michele. “Technologies of the Self.” In Technologies of the Self, edited by Luther H Martin, Huck Gutman, and Patrick H Hutton. University of Massachusetts Press, 1988.
- ↑ udies13 13, no. 4 (2006): 81–99; Thomas Friedman, The Lexus and the Olive Tree (Anchor Books/Doubleday, 2000); Sophie Fuggle et al., eds., Foucault and the History of Our Present (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015), p. 1.