Question

How is schooling as an educational “programme,” a historical construction in Discipline & Punish?

Answer 1

Michel Foucault’s Discipline and Punish throws light on how modern state ensures control over its citizens. According to Michel Foucault who was a radical social philosopher the way of modern state to ensure power of its citizens was through psychological boundation than physical force as it existed historically. Surveillance was a manner in which people were controlled in the modern world through creating a sense of fear. Although surveillance was good for making rules and protocols being followed, it led to long term negative impacts for people as well. It eradicates free will and creates a society of robots and spontaneity dies in people. He was influential thinker of the time and schooling was another aspect of his focus wherein curriculum, mannerisms of teaching, etc were heavily controlled by others.