You Have the Right to Remain Silent

"Our society is one not of spectacle, but of surveillance; under the surface of images, one invests bodies in depth; behind the great abstraction of exchange, there continues the meticulous, concrete training of useful forces; the circuits of communication are the supports of an accumulation and a centralization of knowledge; the play of signs defines the anchorages of power; it is not that the beautiful totality of the individual is amputated, repressed, altered by our social order, it is rather that the individual is carefully fabricated in it" (562).

In “Discipline and Punish,” Michel Foucault describes the concept of “power,” and asserts that it is something that is “dispersed throughout society.” His conclusion maintains that “the citizens of Western democracies act as their own jail-keepers. They internalize the social control that monitors society and maintains the disciplined efficiency of the social system” (549). In his famous example of the Panopticon, which is a “circular prison that allows for permanent surveillance of prisoners,” (549) Foucault explains that the major effect is “to induce in the inmate a state of conscious and permanent visibility that assures the automatic functioning of power” (554).

This idea that permanent visibility (surveillance) of citizens is used as a way to control society is evident in our country in multiple and various ways. One does not literally have to be in jail to feel the “power” lurking over. We see this every single day throughout our daily routines. Surveillance cameras, for instance, are all around us – in schools, shopping malls, workplaces, theme parks, etc. We are, in essence, jailed by these cameras. What does this mean? Simply that we are controlled by the “power” (i.e. by the government). In effect, we are aware that we are powerless and we accept this and move on. We are the inmates of our own lives.

In the following video, George Carlin, a famous stand-up comedian and social critic, discusses the role of religion and government in terms of our “rights.” (I must give a word of caution to those who are 1. too religious 2. too conservative or 3. easily offended – you may want to skip the video):



First, let’s discuss the role of religion in terms of social control. In the video above, Carlin focuses on one simple role of religion – swearing to God (or swearing on the Bible). He insists that “Swearing on the Bible is just one more way of controlling people and keeping them in line.” This is, in many ways, absolutely true of American society. I will not speak of cultures I have no knowledge about, but certainly, I will argue that religion has and does play a major role in maintaining control among the American culture. It is undoubtedly and unmistakably used by the government as another means of social control. Religion is directly linked with our government. Carlin’s example of the 10 amendments confirms the notion that religion and government are directly connected.

Carlin also humors the idea that although some people may believe we are “free,” we in are in fact powerless since we have no rights – “rights are an idea.” These “rights” are merely temporary “privileges,” as Carlin points out. In support of this argument, he talks about 1942, when the rights of Japanese-American citizens were taken away after Pearl Harbor. Rights are not rights when they can be taken away – and they were taken away for these citizens in 1942. This is just one example revealing the fact that this so-called “free” country is not that free after all. We are, like most other Western democracies, controlled by our government – we don’t really have a voice, and these institutions (i.e. schools, churches, courts, etc) would like to keep it this way. Foucault was right in his insistence that we are controlled and “disciplined” by society. The state apparatuses main function, Foucault argues, “is to assure that discipline reigns over society as a whole” (561).

Works Cited:
Foucault, Michel. "Discipline and Punish." Literary Theory: An Anthology 2nd ed. Ed. Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan. Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2004. 549-66. Print.