‘.. Rear Window reads like an ironic reversal of Bentham’s ‘Panopticon’ as exploited by Foucault’…
This was a signifier of the important influence for new techniques of disciplinary technology which lead to surveillance. Foucault wrote a book ‘Discipline and Punish’, where he used Bentham’s design as an argument of knowledge and power. “The panopticon brings together power, control of the body, control of groups and knowledge (The inmate is observed and examined systematically in his cell).” [1]Foucault explains the use of the panopticon, the controller from the middle tower is able to see the individual inmates in their cells. He later in his book goes on to say, “The Panopticon is a marvellous machine which, whatever use one may wish to put it to, produces homogeneous effects of power.”[2, page 202] What he meant by this is, where ever you put the panopticon to use it can be in prison or in schools, the power will act in a certain way within it. Each person who is held within it, are constantly in the watchful eyes of the observer and are kept isolated. The reason why it is marvellous is because the concept is unusual as well as clever, whereby one single person is able to overpower many…
In a Panopticon the people are not in contact with others, so they are unable to exchange ideas and thoughts, which could have resulted in questioning authority: “Each individual...is securely confined to a cell…[and] the side walls prevent him from coming into contact with his companions” (319). Foucault believes the people will be unable to plot an escape because they will not be in contact with others if kept in this isolation. Their lack of communication with others will stop their chances of questioning authority and planning a rebellion.. However, Nurse Ratched does not adhere to this since she let’s patients discourse in the day room every day. She does not try to block the patients’ contact with one another; she actually encourages them to talk in the Therapeutic Community, which is group therapy and used to help the “guy...learn to get along in a group before he’ll be able to function in a normal society” (44). Nurse Ratched believes that this socializing will help them function better in society, rather than isolating them from one another. However, she cannot maintain the kind of control Foucault describes with isolation, in fact, in one scene…(mcmurphy’s bet?) Overall, Foucault’s theory that people need to be isolated in the Panopticon does not play out in Kesey’s novel,…
As art imitates life, the story paralleled part of a new wave of films, which rebelled against the nostalgic pre-war idealism. Since the arrival of television, the average age of moviegoers had fallen significantly. The younger crowd craved plots and characters with which they could identify. Already attuned to the rebellious messages of another revolutionary social tidal wave, rock and roll, patrons sought the same theme on the big screen. The icon of this new cinema was the…
Kracauer, Siegfried. “Basic Concepts.” Film Theory and Criticism. Braudy, Leo and Cohen, Marshall. New York: Oxford, 2009. 147-158.…
Fiction films are often stigmatised by historians, as they distort the truth, causing problems when trying to use them as a source. Their wildly varying content matter, inaccuracies, and bias make them hard to use. Film does not simply suggest a worldview; it states, and we experience, its existence as truth, which is the fundamental power and danger it poses to the observer. One cannot deny, however, film’s phenomenal impact in the twentieth century, drastically changing the way we see the world and how we absorb information. In this way, film is best considered as one stage in the ongoing history of communications. As a historical medium, therefore, fiction film can be very valuable, as despite fictitious content, it still has the potential…
By incorporating religion into films/movies, we become more aware of other religions and traditions that we might not have been as familiar with beforehand. We see that Judaism in film has different ways of being interpreted, depending on the way that you yourself view religion. Through this essay we see that the three main archetypes that represented Jews in film; Antiemetic caricature, Old Jew, and Modern Jew. We also see that Romantic comedies were a genre of film were Judaism became well known for it’s romantic and religious struggle. Therefore, Judaism in film has thrived over the many years and has made an impact within the film…
All throughout history art has been around to appeal to those who were willing to take the time to understand it. While a large majority can appreciate art in itself, it is clear that not everyone has the patience or sometimes are just not even willing to attempt, to appreciate it. In the last century or so film has brought art to the attention of a larger audience through a way that, to many, comes across as more appealing.…
In his concept of the panopticon, Foucault adopted Jeremy Bentham’s prison design as a metaphor for modern disciplinary power. According to Foucault, discipline is invoked through an individual’s consciousness of permanent visibility and surveillance, resulting in compliant and self-policing behaviours as if constantly being watched (Nettleton, 1997). Engrained in this concept is Foucault’s notion of discourse, where he asserts that power is fabricated through language and practices, acting as leverage in legitimising power (Nettleton, 1997). In turn, discourse influences how expert knowledge and ideologies are constructed and maintained within social institutions and processes, and the ensuing power relations observable in society (Nettleton,…
Key Perspective of Michel Foucault What is the Body? The relationship between political power and the body Power, Justice, and Oppression Body is a Result of Political and Economic Strategy of Power Society Shapes Behavior to Make People More Productive for Society Discipline Mechanism of power which regulates behavior of others in a social body Regulates the organization of Space…
“The Panopticon” is a chapter in Foucault’s “Discipline and Punish” that he wrote later in his life. The Panopticon is an idea first illustrated by a circular prison in which all the cells are open to an area in the center where a tower sits. The tower in the center is meant to be blacked out so that it is impossible for the inmates to peer inside. Foucault states the purpose of the Panopticon to create a situation in which, “inmates should be caught up in in a power situation of which they are themselves the bearers” (288). The psychological effect on inmates causes them to be inline out of fear that they may be observed at any given moment which can be used as an easy way to define discipline. The psychological effect can be viewed as the practice of instilling discipline as the inmates are aware of how they are to behave and they act accordingly out fear of being punished because they live with the uncertainty of being observed. This practice of instilling discipline through observation and punishment is used everywhere: schools, office spaces, stores, hospitals, etc. People in these different situations would be under different circumstances than that of those in the prison. They would be watched by other people of the same authoritative level who have the rules instilled within themselves. It…
Indeed, with the vivid visual imageries showing on the silver screen, film becomes a truly powerful media in terms of shaping one’s worldview of the past, establishing one’s ideology of the good and vice, and as Dr. Casper repeatedly stresses, in its later days, self-consciously questioning the social and moral…
“The French Revolution was a decisive period in the shaping of the modern west. It implemented the thought of the philosophies, destroyed the hierarchical and corporate society of the Old Regime, which was a legacy of the Middle Ages, promoted the interests of the bourgeoisie, and quickened the growth of the modern state” ( Perry. Chase. Jacob. Jacob. Von Laue, p. 462).…
James Baldwin’s statement about “what it really means by freedom” that challenged the United States to rethink the meaning of the statement because racism segregation was still happening. On the February of the year of 1960, four black students from North Carolina and Agriculture and Technical State University which in short terms was a black only college. All four students entered a local Woolworth’s store to purchase a couple of items and bravely decided to sit down at a white’s only lunch counter. Do to the color of their skin these individuals were told they would not be served, but they remained in their sits until closing and kept coming back every morning. They were able to gather support from other students and even gathered the…
Freedom has always been a right in my eyes. I was born and raised in the United States where for as long as I can remember I was taught about how truly grateful I should be for living in a place that offers all the freedoms it does. Living here I was brought up believing that all freedoms were rights and everyone should have them no matter what. However James Baldwin brings a different view into play saying that freedom should not be looked at as a right but rather something that needs to be obtained through work. This view however only applies to some places but not others.…