The Between Panopticon And The Schooling System Essay

“The Panopticon functions as a kind of laboratory of power,” Foucault declares; indeed, much knowledge can be ascertained by “penetra[ting] into men’s behavior” (379).

According to Foucault, power does not belong to the individual, but to the system, to the institution. In his essay on Discipline and Punish, Foucault presents his idea of the panopticon mechanism, a mechanism in which visibility is a trap. With little importance over the actual individual in the role of the observer or of the observed, the object of the system is total power over the observed. Due to the unique shape of the panopticon, there are no corners and thus no blind spots for the observed to hide in. The private space is replaced by the public one. Furthermore, as final evidence of total control, the observed never knows for sure if they are being watched or not, as they can’t see the observer (Foucault 200-205). Foucault further argues that this system is followed by any government institution, placing the society under permanent observation. Individuals might try to evade the system, but achieving liberation and freedom is not something that anyone could do. Dostoevsky’s famous novel, Crime and

Proper education can bring a person something that is known as educational power. Power in an individual’s life that can lead them to eliminate guessing because they now know. That person can now serve and understand

Panopticism is a social theory named after the “panopticon”, which was originally developed by the French philosopher, Michel Foucault. Panopticon was first mentioned in his book, Discipline and Punish. In his book, he refers "panopticon" to “an experimental laboratory of power in which behaviour could be modified.” Foucault considered panopticon as a symbol of the “disciplinary society of surveillance” (Panopticism). In the two novels, Nineteen Eighty-Four and Frankenstein, panopticism is an element shown greatly. Though these two novels have many differences, this similarity shared between the two is equally important.

In the essay, “Panopticism,” Michel Foucault brings to attention some concerns on the use of surveillance. He says, in the past surveillance has been enacted on individuals, causing their behavior to change. This has led to the panoptic society of today. One aspect that has greatly been influenced is education. Overall, the advantages of Panopticism outweigh the disadvantages.

The author of the essay “Panopticism”, Michel Foucault gives his opinion on power and discipline in Panopticism. He describes Jeremy Bentham’s “Panopticon”, a tower in the centre of a room which has vision to every cell, generalized for prisoners. In simple words, it functioned in maintaining discipline throughout the jail. It’s most distinctive feature was that; prisoners could be seen without ever seeing. Prisoners would never really know when they are watched and when not. They are always under the impression that someone is keeping an eye on them continuously and if anything goes wrong, or they make mistake, they would be punished severely. Since, a prisoner would never know when he/she is watched, they have to be at their best. In a

Education not only effects your future career and living situation but also your health both physically and mentally. This then effects a person’s life expectancy and also their chances of depression or any other mental illness. Furthermore education has a meaning to society and is important, not only to economic stability but to crime and in 2008 over 70% of woman and over 50% of men in prison had left school not achieving qualifications (TeachFirst, 2016).

In her article, “Foucault, Femininity, and the Modernization of Patriarchal Power”, Bartkey begins by summarizing philosopher Michel Foucault’s literary analysis of the Panopticon and how the prison system works tying it to modern society. Foucault begins by using the example of a student who is forced to sit in assigned seating based of class ranking. The scrutiny the student faces forces him to sit upright; he must keep feet his feet on the floor; his head must stay erect; and he may not slouch or fidget. With

People have ignored the importance of education in one's life nowadays. They give too much emphasis on the grade that they will get and not on the wisdom that they will obtain from it. We must realize that the grades does not exactly determine how well we have learn but it is through experience where we learn most. For example, a person learns how to love oneself more when one experience pain and suffering. A person becomes stronger when it faces different challenges in his life. Hence, experience is the basis of the level of knowledge and it is the ultimate judgment on a person's level.

Despite the changing times, education remains a cornerstone for society . Technology advances, the economy fluctuates, and politics change, but education remains something seen as, not only important but imperative for personal and social growth. Yet, as important as it is touted to be, the quality and purpose of learning is often lost in the assembly-line, manufactured process of education that exists today.

An initial design of Jeremy Bentham, White and Haine noted how the panopticon for Foucault was a metaphor for the architectural figure of the disciplinary composition identified in the plague.15 In summary, the panopticon is a circular architectural structure where the cells are arranged around a central viewing tower in a manner that ensures permanent visibility.16 Resisting any reliance on physical instruments of control (other than the architectural structure and geometrics of the building), the panopticon “installs a repressive system based on a principle of permanent surveillance which ensures the functioning of power”.17 Semple reinforced this point, noting that Foucault elevated the panopticon because it was the instrument of transformation; it becoming the emblem of modern disciplinary power.18 It automised and disindividualised power, with a real subjection born mechanically from a fictitious relation.19 For Foucault, the panopticon was also a mechanism that created an environment that could be used to experiment, alter behaviour and to train/correct individuals. An observer in the panopticon allowed one to carry out experiments on its subjects, study behaviour and analyse actions. The plague stricken town undoubtedly conveyed an exceptional disciplinary model: violently perfect, the effective exercise of the right of the sword.20 It was an image of ‘discipline-blockade’, the enclosed institution established on the fringe of society.21 The panopticon however, was

Formal education helps one gain a much deeper understanding of important needed subjects. In actuality, what we perceive is not always the truth. For one to rely on their senses in order to make sense of the world is not only inaccurate but also unrealistic. Through reasoning and experience one can gain a much more advanced understanding of the world around them. Plato, a well known Greek philosopher, wrote an expert called “The Allegory Of a Cave” to illustrate the difference between given limited knowledge and seeking a more profound knowledge through choice. He writes this narrative to exemplify two different visions: ignorance and understanding. Although higher education is not always needed to acquire knowledge, it helps one realize the reality of the world; Education aids those to attain the correct vision in order to seek truth.

Since my childhood I have always been told ‘Education is the key to success!’ and there is absolutely no other way to achieving beyond more than just survival in this fast-paced but deeply cruel and competitive world. That was a concept endlessly hammered into my head by society, it however never appealed to me simply because of the fact that I found it a concept, something which according to the Longman dictionary of Contemporary English is defined as an idea of how something is, or how something should be done.

The first time the education of children became serious was in the Age of Enlightenment. During this time, the quality of education was based on the economy, thus it was a primitive basis of education. The current education system still runs on some of these old ideas, but in truth, the validity of these principles has expired (RSA). However, the education system has developed somewhat, and some aspects of the information taught to students have advanced. Nevertheless, it is advancing in the wrong direction. The education students receive prepares them for college; it doesn’t prepare them for any other pathway. “When we went to school, we were kept there with a story which is if you worked hard and did well and got a college degree, you would have a job” (RSA). This is a common misconception presently, because some students choose not to attend college, and they find success elsewhere. The mentality that one has to go to college to become successful is inapt and was more accurate in the Age of Enlightenment, when those without an education simply ended up in the factories and coal mine with insufficient wages.

Nowadays, there are more and more people educated in different degrees and different ways. It seems that "education" has become a common word in daily life and it seems to be easy to understand. In fact, education, as a social activity, with a long history of development, a complex and diverse internal structure, interacts with other social activities in multilevel and multifaceted way.