Theory & Philosophy

Michel Foucault’s ”The Subject and Power”

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May 21, 2022
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INSIGHT

Science Shapes Subjects

  • Foucault sees modern thought as more about producing subjects than studying 'power' in the abstract.
  • He identifies sciences (like biology or political economy) that shape people by assigning them roles and norms.
INSIGHT

Three Modes Of Subjectification

  • Foucault lists three modes of subjectification: scientific classification, division, and institutional subsumption.
  • Institutions like medicine or education make people live under predefined identities rather than raw bodily desires.
INSIGHT

Power Is Diffuse, Not Sovereign

  • Power in modernity is diffuse and distributed, not located in a single sovereign figure.
  • This multiplicity of power realities opens new spaces for varied forms of resistance.
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