Visibility-Power Relations in Foucault s Tought

Abstract

Visibility, as a key factor in Foucault’s analyses, had a major role in his thought. It is represented in three ways in his studies: as visual descriptions, as a principle in formation of knowledge, and as a technology of power. Although Foucault’s emphasis on visual descriptions made some scholars considering him as a visual philosopher, by contrast, his revealing of visibility-power relation, induced others to describe him as an opponent of ocularcentrism and believe that Foucault uses “vision” for “denigration of vision”. Thus, this article, by clarifying Foucault’s approach to “vision” and “visibility”, tries to represent a subtle image of visibility-power relation in his thought. In this article, we will discuss that, although the importance of visibility and vision is perceptible in Foucault’s very first works, but it’s in his genealogies which the relation power-visibility and its role in human subjectivation are highlighted. Power, on the one hand, make visibilities and, on the other hand, these visibilities make power analysis, power exercise, and even intervening in power, possible, in turn. Power, in royal as well as modern societies made profit of visibilities; by displaying its glory, hiding itself, and surveillance. Foucault, emphasizing on visibilities of different eras and its relation to power, tries to show us all the ways of visibility are not possible in any given era, and there are limitations in what we can see.

Keywords

• foucault
• visibility
• power
• archeology
• genealogy