ESSAY 3: THE PANOPTICON AND SOCIAL CONTROL
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Due:
In print, beginning of class on Tuesday, March 12.
Deadline for Email Feedback:
(9:30 a.m.) Sunday, March 10
Late Work:
Paper will be docked one full letter grade per class period late.
Assignment: Write a well-developed 3-5 page, double-spaced essay founded on one of the prompts
below. Write your prompt choice on your paper before submission.
1. Baudrillard argues that in today’s society where consumption is the new morality, identity and social
status are determined by external validation of object possession. That is, it is not just what you have,
but that everyone sees that you have it. Visibility is the highest good.
Foucault, in his essay on the panopticon, argues that visibility is a trap. Visibility—the threat of
being seen, classified, and labeled—coerces us into self-moderating our behavior to align with dominant
society’s mores and expectations. This applies to all behavior, from law-abidingness to social constructs
like gender and sexuality.
Both writers address the expanse of social control afforded by a society dominated by the
culture industry and the panopticon, respectively. In a well-developed essay, offer a comparison
between Foucault and Baudrillard. Might their combined theories shed light on the power structure(s)
embedded in contemporary society? Or are they disparate theories, with one offering a better insight
into American culture?
2. Foucault argues that the “political dream” of the panopticon has infiltrated the social institutions at
the foundation of culture: prisons, schools, hospitals, factories. First, provide a brief, objective
summary of Foucault’s theory. Then choose one panoptic institution to analyze for its disciplinary
measures. How does its power system remain visible, yet unverifiable? What is its panoptic goal? What
are its benefits? Its drawbacks?
3. The panopticon is built on a society of surveillance. This concept of watching and being watched
carries new weight with advancements in technology. Camera phones, IP addresses, GPS tracking
devices, debit cards, Facebook and blog posts—nearly everything we do or say can be recorded, tracked,
categorized, and filed.
In this essay, first provide a brief, objective summary of Foucault’s theory of the panopticon.
Then offer an analysis of our panoptic, surveillance-happy society, discussing the extent of
contemporary surveillance. Finally, demonstrate or illustrate this discussion through specific examples.
For example, you might consider celebrity culture, Internet user comments, or YouTube videos. Finally,
answer the “so what” question: what does this mean for us? What bearing does it have on us as
individuals and/or society in general?
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Guidelines:
MLA format and documentation: 12-pt, Times New Roman font. Name and page number in upper right
corner. All quotes, summaries, and paraphrases must include parenthetical citations and a works cited
entry at the end of the paper. Quotations must be used for direct source language.
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MLA Citation:
Last name, first name. “Title of Essay/Article.” Ways of Reading 9th ed. Eds. David Bartholomae and
Anthony Petrosky. Boston: Bedford, 2011. #-#. Print.