Foucault and the Panopticon

Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon was originally created to make prisoners behave as though they are constantly under surveillance. But to Michel Foucault, “The Panopticon must not be understood as a dream building: it is the diagram of a mechanism of power reduced to its ideal form… it is in fact a figure of political technology that may and must be detached from any specific use” (68). While an establishment designed to make prisoners feel as though they are under constant supervision sounds like a good idea, this genius concept isn’t favored by Foucault when it is used in everyday life. Foucault ends his essay on Panopticism by posing the question, “Is it surprising that prisons resemble factories, schools, barracks, hospitals, which all resemble prisons?” (70). The Panopticon only magnifies the fact that society is divided into two groups: the watcher and the watched. This division of society can be seen in nearly all institutions. Schools, hospitals and businesses all function based on the notion that you are under supervision and therefore must behave at all times.

However, in decade run by You Tube and Facebook it is sometimes hard to believe that people don’t like being watched. You Tube is home to millions of moments of stupidity and absurdity caught on film, and Facebook displays millions of pictures and thoughts for the world to see. I think it is safe to say that some people love attention and wish their entire lives could be viewed by the world. So then what is the difference between Bentham’s Panopticon and uploading your life onto You Tube? I believe that two main factors come into play here: the fear of consequence and the ability to choose when to be seen. In classrooms and at work, when we are watched we know that our actions have a chance of receiving consequences. In these settings when we act as though we are being watched, we are behaving carefully so that we do not get into trouble. But when we post videos or pictures for people to view on the Internet, we are expecting to get a reaction, not receive a consequence. While filming a You Tube video or posing for a picture that will knowingly appear on Facebook, most people aren’t thinking, “I hope this doesn’t get me into trouble.” Most people think more along the lines of, “I hope people will think this is funny.” Besides not fearing consequence, with You Tube and Facebook, people can choose when they are seen and what they are seen doing. Being under constant surveillance can be tiring, as people don’t feel free to fully act as themselves. No one wants to be caught doing something unethical or stupid. But when people post images or videos online, they are only seen doing something that they want to be seen doing. The attention received is welcomed rather than feared. So although today’s society seems to love being watched, if people weren’t in control of what part of their lives were made public, the concept of being watched would change drastically.