Foucault: A Very Short Introduction

“Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” This maxim is often attributed to Lord Acton but it fits in perfectly with the views of the French philosopher Michael Foucault. For Foucault, many of the modern systems of punishment and politics are not as progressive as some would assume but are instead concentrated places of power that are less open to radical criticism as they were in the past.An excellent introduction to Foucault’s work was written by Gary Gutting and is part of the Very Short Introduction series out of Oxford University Press. It is a short work and can be read in a little under three or four hours depending on the pace at which one reads. Though often dense, Gutting’s work is not pedantic and his writing is very clear. He covers the spectrum of Foucault’s thoughts on history, politics, punishment, and even sex.It is difficult to boil down all of Foucault’s thoughts but there are a few that Gutting gets to that are of interest to me. The first has to do with historical method and the history of ideas and there are two ideas that Gutting discusses as it relates to Foucault: archaeology and genealogy. “Foucault begins with the fact that, at any given period in a given domain, there are substantial constraints on how people are able to think.” (32) Foucault is not simply addressing linguistic or logical concerns but is interested in how ideas that are now considered obvious were once considered unthinkable. There are rules that restrict our range of thought and by uncovering those rules we can then make sense of the constraints on our thinking. (33) Foucault “thinks that individuals operate in a conceptual environment that determines and limits them in ways of which we cannot be aware.” (33)For Foucault, history should not be thought of in a mere narrative style. It is not a novel with an intentional plot or teleology. Instead, the archaeologist of thought’s job was to see why people thought they way they did and to uncover the systems in place that restrained them. By understanding this we can liberate our own thoughts (to a degree).A similar idea is that of genealogy by which Foucault meant “a historical causal explanation that is material, multiple, and corporeal.” (47) Foucault’s purpose in his method was to show that our institutions and our practices are thoroughly human. Gutting notes that Foucault is following Nietzsche and points out that the German philosopher’s genealogies differ in some regards but are the paradigm of Foucault’s own method. At the heart of this genealogy is the questioning of the basis for our systems of thought.Another interesting section of Gutting’s book on Foucault involves his concept of “the mad.” In modern society, the “mad” are known as the “mentally insane” and a variety of clinical diagnoses are available to categorize them and, in many cases, lock them away. In his book HISTORY OF MADNESS, Foucault uncovers the history of what he considered to be a “creditable challenge to normality” (71). In previous societies the mad were “fools” who offered an alternative wisdom that could be appreciated in its own way. But in the modern era we have turned to science to “correct” these poor, degenerate spirits. “His history,” writes Gutting of Foucault’s work, “suggests that the identification was, on the contrary, introduced as a means of legitimating the authority of physicians in the asylum once the idea of a distinctively moral therapy was abandoned.” (74) In other words, this was nothing more than a power play where concentrations of knowledge held inevitable sway, the mad being the victims.Similarly, the penal system in the West plays on this exact power dynamic. Foucault argued that we assume progress has been made because we no longer execute people in barbaric fashion but that is simply not true. Now, with private prisons, criminals are locked behind closed doors and we cannot see what is happening and what injustices are being perpetrated. Foucault favored the Panopticon, a central tower looking over cells encompassing it all around. This allowed transparency and, per Foucault, induced “in the inmate a state of consciousness and permanent visibility that assures the automatic functioning of power.” (84) This is part of Foucault’s view of “hierarchical observation,” that is to say that we can affect people’s behavior by observing them.Gutting’s book concludes with two chapters on sex which cover the modern views of sexual norms as well as the contrast between ancient views of sex and Christian ideals. This too is about power and control and Foucault uses his archaeological method to understand it. (104)Power is at the heart of much of what Foucault wrote and Gutting’s book gives us a glimpse into the Frenchman’s world. If you are interested in a general survey of Michel Foucault, give Gutting’s Very Short Introduction to him a try.

Gary Gutting's brief survey of the thought of Michel Foucault is not merely one of the best books in Oxford UP's Very Short Introductions series, but one of the clearest, most insightful pieces on Foucault that I've read. I haven't read much Foucault since working my way through most of his books in the late eighties. To prepare for a re-reading of those books I decided to read this book as a refresher/quick overview. Most of the secondary works on Foucault that I read back when where usually borderline impenetrable. Although Foucault is infinitely more lucid than many other French writers -- there is a world of difference between, for instance, Baudrillard and Foucault -- he is unfortunately too prone to linguistic obfuscation. Too many of Foucault's would-be disciples attempt to write in a prose style that is as opaque as anyone on the Left Bank. Gutting is in contrast a model of clarity. He writes insightfully about Foucault while making the analysis no more difficult than it needs to be.The chapters of the book are constructed around discussions of Foucault's major works. They are thematic to the degree that those books dealt with specific ideas or subjects. In every case Gutting does a marvelous job of establishing the context of these works, how they depart from traditional discussions, how they provided innovative new ways of understanding our world, and what some of the more problematic aspects of the works are. Gutting clearly (and justifiably) believes that Foucault made some very important contributions that enable us to understand how problematic many of our unexamined assumptions about society are, but at the same time refuses to be a blind disciple. There are shortcomings to Foucault's work as well as some misconceptions. Gutting is as willing to acknowledge the former as he is to battle the latter.I strongly recommend this to anyone wanting to read Foucault for the first time, as well as anyone (like myself) who haven't read him in a while but would like a refresher. To be frank, I believe I would have made better use of my reading of Foucault had I had an introduction this clear and insightful when I was reading him in the late eighties.

I really enjoyed this book, as it gave me a good overview of this philosopher and his methods. It was a bit difficult in places, but much easier than reading Foucault himself.

I bought this book when writing an essay on Foucault and Queer Theory for university. It was super helpful and the small size of it made it perfect to chuck in my bag to read on the go. It’s also sorted into helpful sections.

everything ok 👌

I think this series of books 'A short introduction to...' is a great idea but maybe around things like French social theory it begins to find its limits. It tends to assume you have such a lot of background knowledge that it's hard to believe anyone with it would be reading a short introduction. This reviewer finds this book difficult to understand, perhaps because of my own intellectual limitations, but also perhaps it might have been better to purchase one of Foucaul's books and read that. It might have been more satisfying even if it wouldn't have provided much of an overview of his work.

Like all this series gives an excellent introduction to the subject. This was to aid a foundation course for University. The MP3 version on audible also purchased is excellent

It is an incredible feat to write an introduction to Foucault without mentioning discourse or episteme. Not very helpful.