Panopticism

In his essay Panopticism, Focault gives support to the basic argument concerning the panopticon, that communication is key to knowledge. Within the panopticon, there is no communication among the prisoners or those who view them, He breaks down our social or economical systems and explains societies mentality on the law system. He answer the "why's" in the way certain individuals act and think as they do . he also discusses Jeremy Benthams's Panopticon and other disciplinary models. However, after reading Panopticism, the question baffles everyone is, what is panopticism anyway?

Panopticism is the combination of three elements: monitoring, control, and correction. This form, which is exerted on individuals, is organized through a network of institutions. it is a major feature of modern society. arises in the period from the late eighteenth to early nineteenth century. Its origins are mixed. it is the general principle of a new ‘political anatomy’ whose object and end are not the relations of sovereignty but the relations of discipline.

According to Foucault, the primary difference between Bentham's Panopticon and the "disciplinary mechanism" of panopticism is that the Panopticon is a physical architectural utopia in which discipline is enforced and panopticism enforces discipline invisibly, without a physical, palpable presence. The idea of panopticism was refined in Bentham's vision of the Panopticon, but true panopticism grew from this imaginary institution. Since man wrote his first law , principles of power and discipline have been evolving from focusing on the body and pain to concentrating on the mind and soul. Human society largely abandoned public displays of torture, punishment and overt surveillance