If not, he was a domestic servant who tried to kill King Louis XIV back in 1757, unsurprisingly, the year he died. Have you ever heard of a guy called Robert-François Damiens? In case you didn’t know, “Discipline and Punish” is not merely something you can hear during a BDSM session, but also something people cite with reverence during many a-serious sociological and/or academic debate.Īnd the subtitle makes it clear what the book is about: the birth of the prison.īut, until we get there, we need to look at its pre-history.įoucault, being a structuralist, isn’t that much interested in chronology as he is in structure.įortunately, his structure somewhat mirrors the chronology in this case: “Discipline and Punish” is divided into four interestingly titled parts: Torture, Punishment, Discipline, and Prison.

Ironically, a lifelong homosexual, Foucault died from HIV/AIDS complications in 1984, becoming the first public figure in France to die from the disease. In 1975, he published “ Discipline and Punish” and just a year later “The History of Sexuality,” a four-volume work where he argued that sexuality is a social construct. He followed that up with few other structuralist books before being admitted to the Collège of France, a position he will retain until his death.

Michel Foucault was a French philosopher, historian of ideas and social theorist, extremely influential in areas as diverse as communication and cultural studies, feminism and literary theory.īorn in an upper-class family in France, Foucault earned degrees in philosophy and psychology at the Sorbonne (University of Paris).Īfter spending some time working as a foreign diplomat, in 1961, Foucault published “ The History of Madness,” a massive volume which gained him instant recognition and respect. “Discipline and Punish” is an extremely work of philosophy and sociology and anyone who’s interested in either should spend some time reading it.Īlso, it will certainly be of interest to people who are hooked on books such as “ 48 Laws of Power,” since Michel Foucault is the original and most influential theoretician of power and its relationship to knowledge and social control.Īnd “Discipline and Punish” is his most famous book on the subject.

Who Should Read “Discipline and Punish”? And Why? Michel Foucault, in “ Discipline and Punish” claims that, unfortunately, it’s because of the worse – If not the devils. Steven Pinker would say because of the better angels of our nature. Have you ever wondered why public tortures and executions evolved into prisons and penitentiaries?

Discipline and punish foucault