Archival
identification number FCL3.
Foucault-Key-Concepts
).
While Foucault initially refers to refusal, curiosity and innovation as val- ues, in the same interview he also refers to them as principles.
Given their relevance to critique, and also taking into consideration that Foucault states that he both engages in and endeavours to promote them through his philosophical work, I think it is consistent with a Foucauldian perspective also to think of refusal, curiosity and innova- tion as techniques or practices.
Cultivating a critical attitude/countering self-sacrifice
The practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation illustrate that critique or a critical attitude opposes the self-sacrificing character of modern subjectivity. Self-sacrifice characterizes a mode of subjectivation that requires individuals to subjugate themselves to authority in order to gain access to truth. The first thing we notice about critique is that gaining such access is not central. Cultivating a critical attitude entails an oppositional or at least ambivalent stance relative to what is pre- sented to us as true, as given, as necessary. It emphasizes reflection and knowledge, as opposed to truth, with the result that self-constitution is an ongoing and continually evolving process, not a linear development
? ? 182
PRACTICES OF THE SELF
toward a pre-established goal. The non-linear nature o f critique as a mode of self-constitution is further supported by the practice of innova- tion: critique functions in such a way as to develop new, different and unexpected modes of thought and existence; it does not move toward a pre-determined, identifiable end.
Considering a specific example from my own experience may help to illustrate how engaging in refusal, curiosity and innovation facilitates new modes of self-constitution - specifically, modes that do not entail self-sacrifice. A few years ago I began to experience physical pain that was unrelated to injury or, as far as I could tell, to illness. At an appoint- ment with my primary care physician I described what I was experienc- ing. He made a diagnosis and prescribed medication. After a few days I was still in pain, and so went to the emergency room that weekend. The ER doctor said that the specific way in which I described the pain was puzzling to him, but given the area of the body in which the pain was present, he agreed with my primary care physician's diagnosis. He wrote me a new prescription and referred me to a specialist.
Two doctors had now suggested that my pain was stemming from a certain condition, despite the fact that the way in which I was describing the pain did not exactly coincide with the way in which that condition usually manifested itself. At this point, I began to doubt my own experi- ence. Was I describing the pain incorrectly? Or did the pain in fact feel more like what the literature on this particular condition said it was supposed to ? When I met with the specialist a few days later I could tell by the expression on his face that what I was describing was unfamiliar to him. I stopped mid-sentence and asked, "Haven't you ever heard things described in this way before by other patients? " He replied that he had not, and that he ought to examine me to see what was going on. I agreed to the examination and subsequently to a procedure he said would provide me with relief.
For the purposes of our discussion here, what matters about my experience is not the success of the procedure or the competence of my physicians. What requires our attention is rather how I constitute myself and am in turn constituted as a subject. Within the context of the health care system I constitute myself as a subject in order to gain access to the truth about myself by way of a set of practices that subordinate me to authority (not only that of physicians, but also of system and hospital administrators, insurance companies and the like). Within this system, in other words, I both constitute myself and am in turn constituted as a "patient" (and also as a "consumer"). Through this constitution, I sacrifice a part of myself, specifically, the insubordinate part, the part that "gives itself the right to question truth on its effects of power and
? 183
MICHEL FOUCAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
question power on its discourses of truth" (Foucault 1997b: 32). Such sacrifice, in so far as it curtails my critical capacities, results in the reinscription of my own subordination. Sitting in physicians' offices and the emergency room, I questioned myself instead on what it was about my situation that was making me question myself. I agreed to treatment (medication and a procedure) even though I was uncertain about whether I was being properly diagnosed. I was inhibited from asking questions of my physician and taking a more active role in my own physical health and well-being.
As noted earlier, it is not the case that "good" doctors do not subor- dinate their patients and therefore promote self-sacrifice while "bad" doctors do: there are not beneficial norms I can utilize and harmful norms that I can avoid. As "the patient", I constitute myself (and am constituted) through norms and practices that subordinate me. Given the relationship I have illustrated between self-sacrifice and being a patient, we might be tempted at this point to fall back upon a sovereign notion of power, and say that doctors possess power which they then wield against their patients, thereby subjugating them. But we need to remember from earlier chapters Foucault's analysis of how modern power relations function; doing so, we see that doctors are also impli- cated in relations of power through which they are constituted and also constitute themselves in ways that promote self-sacrifice and inhibit critique. While it is true that "the doctor" is constituted as an authority figure who possesses knowledge that "the patient" does not, the doctor gains and maintains access to that knowledge only through adhering to accepted norms and practices within the health care system. She must, for example, conduct herself in a professional manner and treat patients in accordance with prevailing medical standards and protocols (as well as within the parameters set by insurance companies). This is not to say that doctors ought to adopt a casual attitude toward their patients' health, become overly friendly with them, or treat them with unap- proved medical interventions. It is rather to encourage critical analysis of ways in which the (self-)constitution of "the doctor" both enables and constrains physicians' ability to effectively care for and promote the physical and mental health of their patients (and themselves, for that matter).
How might a critical attitude, characterized by the practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation, facilitate a new mode of self-constitution that does not entail such sacrifice on my part? My discussion in the previ- ous paragraph, I think, constitutes refusal as Foucault conceives of it. In order to refuse particular norms that are presented to us as self- evident, we have to be able to see that prevailing modes of thought and
? ? 184
PRACTICES O F THE SEL F
existence are not necessary modes; without such realization, refusal of particular norms and practices is not even conceivable, for how can I see as refusable what is simply inevitable? Once I see that I am in fact constituted as a patient within the health care system I can begin to take issue with particular aspects of how I am constituted and in doing so, begin to constitute myself differently. That is, having refused to accept that prevailing conditions are necessary conditions, I can become curi- ous about my current situation. Recognizing that I constitute myself as obedient to authority within the context of the health care system in order to gain access to truth, I can begin to analyse what it is about the health care system that encourages me to behave in this manner, and analyse the effects of my current attitude. I can also begin to think about how I might act differently. For example, if I determine that part of the reason I defer to the authority of my doctor is because I do not want to appear disrespectful, I might consider why, within this particular context, I seem to be confusing respect with deference. Am I concerned with appearing respectful or with actually treating the physician with respect? I can then do some innovating by marking clear distinctions between respect and deference, beginning to experiment with conduct- ing myself in a manner that is both respectful and assertive, and making sure that the physicians and others with whom I am dealing within the health care system are in fact worthy of my respect. If they are, I should treat them accordingly; if they are not, I shouldn't be concerned with appearances at all.
It is important to recognize that cultivating a critical attitude through the practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation does not get me outside of prevailing power relations. Even if I wanted to I could not become a medical doctor and treat myself to avoid being "the patient". I must rely up physicians for care, and I still have to navigate the system's bureaucracy: within the health care system I will be constituted as "the patient" or "the consumer", and my treatment within the system will be based on prevailing notions of what a patient or consumer is. But as Foucault makes clear, even though all self-constitution takes place within a context of constraint, I am not merely determined by those pre- vailing notions; I possess the capacity to constitute myself and I can do so differently by way of taking up existing norms and practices in new ways or rejecting them completely. While neither strategy is without its risks (my doctor may find me annoying if I ask too many questions or seek a second opinion) even negative consequences (being thought annoying) may open onto other possibilities: I can find a new doctor, engage in holistic practices like yoga that problematize the traditional Western separation of body and mind, explore alternative methods
? 185
MICHEL FOU CAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
of alleviating pain (acupuncture, for example). Foucault's work thus provides us with the crucial insight that in so far as I constitute myself, I can constitute myself differently. Equipped with this insight, I am able to take up practices that facilitate my negotiation of existing power relations in ways that maximize my critical and creative capacities, thereby minimizing and working towards the eradication of subjectivity characterized by self-sacrifice.
Notes
1. In describing my own situation I am suggesting neither that marriage is unprob- lematic nor that feminists should not have children. Indeed, I believe that mar- riage as an institution is oppressive to women; I mention the fact that I do not have children simply in order to draw attention to the prevailing expectation that married women reproduce. From my perspective, my relationship to my own marriage is one way in which I endeavour to constitute myself differently.
? ? 186
Chro ology
? ? 15 October 1926 1936-40 1940-45 Autumn 1945
Autumn 1946 August 1951
Autumn 195 1- Summer 1952 June1951
1952-55 1955-5 8
1958
1959 1960-66 1 9 6 1 1963 1966-68
Paul-Michel Foucault is born in Poitiers, France
Attends Lycee Henri-1\-: Poitiers
Attends College Saint-Stanislaus, Poitiers
Enters Lycee Henri-IV, Paris (to study for khd? ne - a year of special preparatory training for entry into the Ecole Normale Superieure) ; meets Jean Hyppolite
Enters Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris; meets Louis Althusser Achieves Agregation de Philosophie; examined by Georges Canguilhem
Fondation Thiers, Centre de recherches humanistes, Paris
Earns a Diploma in Psychopathology from the Paris Institute of Psychology
Assistant Lecturer at University of Lille
Cultural Delegate to the University of Uppsala, Sweden; meets Georges Dumezil in March 1956
Director of Center for French Civilization, Warsaw, Poland; teaches in the Romance Languages Institute at the University of Warsaw
Director of French Cultural Institute, Hamburg, Germany; teaches in the Department of Romance Languages at the Uni- versity of Hamburg
Member of the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University of Clermont-Ferrand; becomes a tenured professor in 1962 after successfully defending his thesis
Publication of Folie et deraison. Histoire de ! a folie a l'dge Clas- sique (Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age ofReason)
Publication of Naissance de ! a Clinique. Une archeology du regard medical (The Birth ofthe Clinic: An Archaeology ofMedi- cal Perception)
Visiting Professor of Philosophy, University of Tunis, Tunisia
187
December 1970
Delivers inaugural lecture at the College de France, 'TOrdre
Autumn 1982 Autumn 1983
delivers the Howison Lectures in October
Spends eight weeks at the University of Vermont
Visiting Professor at the University of California, Berkeley
2 June 1984 25 June 1984
MICHEL FOUCAULT: KEY CON CEPTS
1966 Publication of Les Mots et les choses. Une acheologie des sciences humaines (The Order ofThings: An Archaeology of the Human Sciences)
1968-69 Tenured Professor of Philosophy, University of Paris VIII, Vincennes
1969 Elected to the College de France; Publication of I! Archeologie du savoir (The Archaeology ofKnowledge)
du discours" (The Discourse on Language)
1971 Founds Groupe d'Information sur les Prisons (GIP)
1975 Publication of Surveiller et punir. Naissance de Ia prison (Disci-
pline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison)
1976 Publication of La Volante de Savoir: Volume I of Histoire de Ia
sexualite (Volume I of The History of Sexuality)
1980 Visiting Professor at the University of California, Berkeley;
1984 Publication of I! Usage des plaisirs: Volume II of Histoire de Ia sexualite (The Use ofPleasure: Volume II of The History of Sexuality)
1984 Publication of Le Souci de soi: Volume III of Histoire de Ia sexualite (The Care of the Self: Volume III of The History of Sexuality)
Foucault collapses in his apartment; he is admitted to the Hopi- tal Salpetriere on 9 June
Foucault dies in the Hopital Salpetriere, Paris All information comes from Eribon (1991).
? ? 188
Bibliography
? Works by Michel Foucault
Foucault, M. 1 972. The Archaeology ofKnowledge and the Discourse on Language, A. M. Sheridan Smith (trans. ). New York: Pantheon. Originally published as I. ;Archeologie du savoir (Paris: Gallimard, 1969).
Foucault, M. 1973. The OrderofThings. NewYork: Vintage. Originally published as Les Mots et les chases: Une acheologie des sciences humaines (Paris: Gallimard, 1966).
Foucault,M. 1975. TheBirthoftheClinic:AnArchaeologyofMedicalPerception,A. M. Sheridan Smith (trans. ). NewYork: Vintage. Originally published as Naissance de Ia Clinique: Une archeology du regard medical (Paris: PUF, 1963).
Foucault, M. 1976. Histoire de la sexualite val. 1: La volonte de savoir. Paris: Gallimard.
Foucault, M. 1977. "Nietzsche, Genealogy, History". In Language, Counter- Memory, and Practice: Selected Essays and Interviews, D. F. Bouchard (ed. ),
139-64. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Foucault,M. 1979. DisciplineandPunish:TheBirtho{thePrison,AlanSheridan
(trans. ). New York: Vintage. Originally published as Surveiller et punir: Naissance
de la prison (Paris: Gallimard, 1975).
Foucault, M. (ed. ) 1980a. Herculine Barbin, Being the Recently Discovered Mem-
oirs o{a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite, Richard McDougall (trans. ).
Brighton: Harvester.
Foucault, M. 1980b. Introduction to Herculine Barbin: Being the Recently Dis-
covered Memoirs o{ a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite. New York:
Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980c. "Body/Power". In Power! I<nowledge: Selected Interviews and
OtherWritings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall,]. Mepham
& K. Soper (trans. ), 55-62. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980d. "Truth and Power". In Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews
and Other Writings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 109-33. New York: Pantheon.
189
? ? MICHEL FOU CAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
Foucault, M. 1980e. "Power and Strategies". In Power/Knowledge: Selected Inter- v i e w s a n d O t h e r Wr i t i n g s , 1 9 7 2 - 1 9 7 7 , C . G o r d o n ( e d . ) , C . G o r d o n , L . M a r s h a l l , ]. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 134-45. NewYork: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980f. "The Politics of Health in the Eighteenth Century". In Power/ Knowledge: SelectedInterviews and OtherWritings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 166-82. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 19801). "Power, Moral Values, and the Intellectual". IMEC (Insti- tut Memoirs de ! 'Edition Contemporaine), Caen, France. Archival identification number FCL2. A02-06.
Foucault, M. 1980h. "Christianity and Confession". IMEC (lnstitut Memoirs de ! 'Edition Contemporaine), Caen, France.
Archival identification number FCL3. 4, FCL2 A03-04.
Foucault, M. 1982a. "The Subject and Power". In Michel Foucault: Beyond Struc- turalism and Hermeneutics, H. Dreyfus & P. Rabinow (eds), 208-26. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Foucault, M. 1982b. I, Pierre Riviere, having slaughtered my mother, my sister, and my brother: A Case ofParricide in the 19th Century. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.
Foucault, M. 1984a. "What is Enlightenment? " In The Foucault Reader, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 32-50. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1984b. "Nietzsche, Genealogy, History". In The Foucault Reader, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 76-100. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1986. The History ofSexuality, Volume III: The Care ofthe Self, R. Hurley (trans. ). NewYork: Pantheon. Originally published asHistoiredelasexu- alite, val. III: Le Souci de soi (Paris: Gallimard, 1984).
Foucault, M. 1988. "Truth, Power, Self: An Interview with Michel Foucault". In Technologies ofthe Self: A Seminar with Michel Foucault, L. Martin, H. Gutman & P. Hutton (eds), 9-15. Amherst, MA: University ofMassachusettsPress.
Foucault, M. 1 990a. The History ofSexuality, Volume I: An Introduction, R. Hurley (trans. ). New York: Vintage. Originally published as Histoire de la sexualite, val. I : La Volante de savoir (Paris: Gallimard, 1976).
Foucault, M. 1990b. The History ofSexuality, Volume II: The Use ofPleasure, R. Hurley (trans. ). NewYork: Vintage. OriginallypublishedasHistoiredefasexualite, val. II: ];Usage des plaisirs (Paris: Gallimard, 1984).
Foucault, M. 1990c. "Critical Theory/Intellectual History". In Michel Foucault: P o l i t i c s , P h i l o s o p h y , C u l t u r e . I n t e r v i e w s a n d O t h e r Wr i t i n g s 1 9 7 7 - 1 9 8 4 , L . K r i t z - man (ed. ), A. Sheridan & others (trans. ), 17-46. London: Routledge.
Foucault, M. 1990d. "Practicing Criticism". InMichelFoucault: Politics, Philosophy, Culture. Interviews and Other Writings 1 9 77-1 9 84, L. Kritzman (ed. ), A. Sheridan & others (trans. ), 152-6. London: Routledge.
Foucault,M. 1990e. "Qu'est-cequeIacritique? "BulletindelaSocieteFran<;aisede Philosophie 84(2): 35-63.
Foucault, M. 199 1a. "How an 'Experience Book' is Born". In Remarks on Marx, R. ]. Goldstein & ]. Cascaito (trans. ), 25-42. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1991b. "Questions of Method". In The Foucault Effect: Studies in Governmentality, G. Burchell, C. Gordon & P. Miller (eds), 73-86. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Foucault, M. 1991c. "Governmentality". In The Foucault Effect: Studies in Gov- enzmentality, G. Burchell, C. Gordon & P. Miller (eds), 87-104. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
? ? 190
? BI BLIOGRAPHY
Foucault, M. 1994. "The Ethics of Care for the Self as the Practice of Freedom". In The Final Foucault, J. W Bernauer and D. Rasmussen (eds), 1-20. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Foucault, M. 1996a. "The Ethics of the Concern for the Self as a Practice of Free- dom". In Foucault Live: Collected Interviews 1961-1984, S. Lotringer (ed. ), 432-49. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1996b. "The Return of Morality". In Foucault Live: Collected Inter- views 1961-1984, S. Lotringer (ed. ), 465-73. NewYork: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997a. The Politics ofTruth, S. Lotringer & L. Hochroth (eds). New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997b. "What is Critique? " In The Politics of'Huth, S. Lotringer & L. Hochroth (eds), 23-82. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997c. Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ). New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997d. "Technologies of the Self". In Ethics, Subjectivity and TJ? uth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 223-5 1 . New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997e. "The Ethics of Concern for Self as a Practice of Freedom". In Ethics, SubjectivityandTruth: TheEssentialWorksofMichelFoucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 28 1-301. New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997f. "On the Genealogy of Ethics: An Overview of Work in Progress". In Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 253-80. New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997g. "What is Enlightenment? " In Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works of Michel Foucault 1 954-1 984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 3 0 3 - 1 9 . N e w Yo r k : N e w P r e s s .
Foucault, M. 1998. Aesthetics, Method, and Epistemology: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 2, J. Faubion (ed. ). New York: New Press. Foucault, M. 1999a. "On the Government of the Living". In Religion and Culture:
Michel Foucault, J. Carrette (ed. ), 154-7. London: Routledge.
Foucault, M. 1999b.
Cultivating a critical attitude/countering self-sacrifice
The practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation illustrate that critique or a critical attitude opposes the self-sacrificing character of modern subjectivity. Self-sacrifice characterizes a mode of subjectivation that requires individuals to subjugate themselves to authority in order to gain access to truth. The first thing we notice about critique is that gaining such access is not central. Cultivating a critical attitude entails an oppositional or at least ambivalent stance relative to what is pre- sented to us as true, as given, as necessary. It emphasizes reflection and knowledge, as opposed to truth, with the result that self-constitution is an ongoing and continually evolving process, not a linear development
? ? 182
PRACTICES OF THE SELF
toward a pre-established goal. The non-linear nature o f critique as a mode of self-constitution is further supported by the practice of innova- tion: critique functions in such a way as to develop new, different and unexpected modes of thought and existence; it does not move toward a pre-determined, identifiable end.
Considering a specific example from my own experience may help to illustrate how engaging in refusal, curiosity and innovation facilitates new modes of self-constitution - specifically, modes that do not entail self-sacrifice. A few years ago I began to experience physical pain that was unrelated to injury or, as far as I could tell, to illness. At an appoint- ment with my primary care physician I described what I was experienc- ing. He made a diagnosis and prescribed medication. After a few days I was still in pain, and so went to the emergency room that weekend. The ER doctor said that the specific way in which I described the pain was puzzling to him, but given the area of the body in which the pain was present, he agreed with my primary care physician's diagnosis. He wrote me a new prescription and referred me to a specialist.
Two doctors had now suggested that my pain was stemming from a certain condition, despite the fact that the way in which I was describing the pain did not exactly coincide with the way in which that condition usually manifested itself. At this point, I began to doubt my own experi- ence. Was I describing the pain incorrectly? Or did the pain in fact feel more like what the literature on this particular condition said it was supposed to ? When I met with the specialist a few days later I could tell by the expression on his face that what I was describing was unfamiliar to him. I stopped mid-sentence and asked, "Haven't you ever heard things described in this way before by other patients? " He replied that he had not, and that he ought to examine me to see what was going on. I agreed to the examination and subsequently to a procedure he said would provide me with relief.
For the purposes of our discussion here, what matters about my experience is not the success of the procedure or the competence of my physicians. What requires our attention is rather how I constitute myself and am in turn constituted as a subject. Within the context of the health care system I constitute myself as a subject in order to gain access to the truth about myself by way of a set of practices that subordinate me to authority (not only that of physicians, but also of system and hospital administrators, insurance companies and the like). Within this system, in other words, I both constitute myself and am in turn constituted as a "patient" (and also as a "consumer"). Through this constitution, I sacrifice a part of myself, specifically, the insubordinate part, the part that "gives itself the right to question truth on its effects of power and
? 183
MICHEL FOUCAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
question power on its discourses of truth" (Foucault 1997b: 32). Such sacrifice, in so far as it curtails my critical capacities, results in the reinscription of my own subordination. Sitting in physicians' offices and the emergency room, I questioned myself instead on what it was about my situation that was making me question myself. I agreed to treatment (medication and a procedure) even though I was uncertain about whether I was being properly diagnosed. I was inhibited from asking questions of my physician and taking a more active role in my own physical health and well-being.
As noted earlier, it is not the case that "good" doctors do not subor- dinate their patients and therefore promote self-sacrifice while "bad" doctors do: there are not beneficial norms I can utilize and harmful norms that I can avoid. As "the patient", I constitute myself (and am constituted) through norms and practices that subordinate me. Given the relationship I have illustrated between self-sacrifice and being a patient, we might be tempted at this point to fall back upon a sovereign notion of power, and say that doctors possess power which they then wield against their patients, thereby subjugating them. But we need to remember from earlier chapters Foucault's analysis of how modern power relations function; doing so, we see that doctors are also impli- cated in relations of power through which they are constituted and also constitute themselves in ways that promote self-sacrifice and inhibit critique. While it is true that "the doctor" is constituted as an authority figure who possesses knowledge that "the patient" does not, the doctor gains and maintains access to that knowledge only through adhering to accepted norms and practices within the health care system. She must, for example, conduct herself in a professional manner and treat patients in accordance with prevailing medical standards and protocols (as well as within the parameters set by insurance companies). This is not to say that doctors ought to adopt a casual attitude toward their patients' health, become overly friendly with them, or treat them with unap- proved medical interventions. It is rather to encourage critical analysis of ways in which the (self-)constitution of "the doctor" both enables and constrains physicians' ability to effectively care for and promote the physical and mental health of their patients (and themselves, for that matter).
How might a critical attitude, characterized by the practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation, facilitate a new mode of self-constitution that does not entail such sacrifice on my part? My discussion in the previ- ous paragraph, I think, constitutes refusal as Foucault conceives of it. In order to refuse particular norms that are presented to us as self- evident, we have to be able to see that prevailing modes of thought and
? ? 184
PRACTICES O F THE SEL F
existence are not necessary modes; without such realization, refusal of particular norms and practices is not even conceivable, for how can I see as refusable what is simply inevitable? Once I see that I am in fact constituted as a patient within the health care system I can begin to take issue with particular aspects of how I am constituted and in doing so, begin to constitute myself differently. That is, having refused to accept that prevailing conditions are necessary conditions, I can become curi- ous about my current situation. Recognizing that I constitute myself as obedient to authority within the context of the health care system in order to gain access to truth, I can begin to analyse what it is about the health care system that encourages me to behave in this manner, and analyse the effects of my current attitude. I can also begin to think about how I might act differently. For example, if I determine that part of the reason I defer to the authority of my doctor is because I do not want to appear disrespectful, I might consider why, within this particular context, I seem to be confusing respect with deference. Am I concerned with appearing respectful or with actually treating the physician with respect? I can then do some innovating by marking clear distinctions between respect and deference, beginning to experiment with conduct- ing myself in a manner that is both respectful and assertive, and making sure that the physicians and others with whom I am dealing within the health care system are in fact worthy of my respect. If they are, I should treat them accordingly; if they are not, I shouldn't be concerned with appearances at all.
It is important to recognize that cultivating a critical attitude through the practices of refusal, curiosity and innovation does not get me outside of prevailing power relations. Even if I wanted to I could not become a medical doctor and treat myself to avoid being "the patient". I must rely up physicians for care, and I still have to navigate the system's bureaucracy: within the health care system I will be constituted as "the patient" or "the consumer", and my treatment within the system will be based on prevailing notions of what a patient or consumer is. But as Foucault makes clear, even though all self-constitution takes place within a context of constraint, I am not merely determined by those pre- vailing notions; I possess the capacity to constitute myself and I can do so differently by way of taking up existing norms and practices in new ways or rejecting them completely. While neither strategy is without its risks (my doctor may find me annoying if I ask too many questions or seek a second opinion) even negative consequences (being thought annoying) may open onto other possibilities: I can find a new doctor, engage in holistic practices like yoga that problematize the traditional Western separation of body and mind, explore alternative methods
? 185
MICHEL FOU CAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
of alleviating pain (acupuncture, for example). Foucault's work thus provides us with the crucial insight that in so far as I constitute myself, I can constitute myself differently. Equipped with this insight, I am able to take up practices that facilitate my negotiation of existing power relations in ways that maximize my critical and creative capacities, thereby minimizing and working towards the eradication of subjectivity characterized by self-sacrifice.
Notes
1. In describing my own situation I am suggesting neither that marriage is unprob- lematic nor that feminists should not have children. Indeed, I believe that mar- riage as an institution is oppressive to women; I mention the fact that I do not have children simply in order to draw attention to the prevailing expectation that married women reproduce. From my perspective, my relationship to my own marriage is one way in which I endeavour to constitute myself differently.
? ? 186
Chro ology
? ? 15 October 1926 1936-40 1940-45 Autumn 1945
Autumn 1946 August 1951
Autumn 195 1- Summer 1952 June1951
1952-55 1955-5 8
1958
1959 1960-66 1 9 6 1 1963 1966-68
Paul-Michel Foucault is born in Poitiers, France
Attends Lycee Henri-1\-: Poitiers
Attends College Saint-Stanislaus, Poitiers
Enters Lycee Henri-IV, Paris (to study for khd? ne - a year of special preparatory training for entry into the Ecole Normale Superieure) ; meets Jean Hyppolite
Enters Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris; meets Louis Althusser Achieves Agregation de Philosophie; examined by Georges Canguilhem
Fondation Thiers, Centre de recherches humanistes, Paris
Earns a Diploma in Psychopathology from the Paris Institute of Psychology
Assistant Lecturer at University of Lille
Cultural Delegate to the University of Uppsala, Sweden; meets Georges Dumezil in March 1956
Director of Center for French Civilization, Warsaw, Poland; teaches in the Romance Languages Institute at the University of Warsaw
Director of French Cultural Institute, Hamburg, Germany; teaches in the Department of Romance Languages at the Uni- versity of Hamburg
Member of the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University of Clermont-Ferrand; becomes a tenured professor in 1962 after successfully defending his thesis
Publication of Folie et deraison. Histoire de ! a folie a l'dge Clas- sique (Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age ofReason)
Publication of Naissance de ! a Clinique. Une archeology du regard medical (The Birth ofthe Clinic: An Archaeology ofMedi- cal Perception)
Visiting Professor of Philosophy, University of Tunis, Tunisia
187
December 1970
Delivers inaugural lecture at the College de France, 'TOrdre
Autumn 1982 Autumn 1983
delivers the Howison Lectures in October
Spends eight weeks at the University of Vermont
Visiting Professor at the University of California, Berkeley
2 June 1984 25 June 1984
MICHEL FOUCAULT: KEY CON CEPTS
1966 Publication of Les Mots et les choses. Une acheologie des sciences humaines (The Order ofThings: An Archaeology of the Human Sciences)
1968-69 Tenured Professor of Philosophy, University of Paris VIII, Vincennes
1969 Elected to the College de France; Publication of I! Archeologie du savoir (The Archaeology ofKnowledge)
du discours" (The Discourse on Language)
1971 Founds Groupe d'Information sur les Prisons (GIP)
1975 Publication of Surveiller et punir. Naissance de Ia prison (Disci-
pline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison)
1976 Publication of La Volante de Savoir: Volume I of Histoire de Ia
sexualite (Volume I of The History of Sexuality)
1980 Visiting Professor at the University of California, Berkeley;
1984 Publication of I! Usage des plaisirs: Volume II of Histoire de Ia sexualite (The Use ofPleasure: Volume II of The History of Sexuality)
1984 Publication of Le Souci de soi: Volume III of Histoire de Ia sexualite (The Care of the Self: Volume III of The History of Sexuality)
Foucault collapses in his apartment; he is admitted to the Hopi- tal Salpetriere on 9 June
Foucault dies in the Hopital Salpetriere, Paris All information comes from Eribon (1991).
? ? 188
Bibliography
? Works by Michel Foucault
Foucault, M. 1 972. The Archaeology ofKnowledge and the Discourse on Language, A. M. Sheridan Smith (trans. ). New York: Pantheon. Originally published as I. ;Archeologie du savoir (Paris: Gallimard, 1969).
Foucault, M. 1973. The OrderofThings. NewYork: Vintage. Originally published as Les Mots et les chases: Une acheologie des sciences humaines (Paris: Gallimard, 1966).
Foucault,M. 1975. TheBirthoftheClinic:AnArchaeologyofMedicalPerception,A. M. Sheridan Smith (trans. ). NewYork: Vintage. Originally published as Naissance de Ia Clinique: Une archeology du regard medical (Paris: PUF, 1963).
Foucault, M. 1976. Histoire de la sexualite val. 1: La volonte de savoir. Paris: Gallimard.
Foucault, M. 1977. "Nietzsche, Genealogy, History". In Language, Counter- Memory, and Practice: Selected Essays and Interviews, D. F. Bouchard (ed. ),
139-64. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Foucault,M. 1979. DisciplineandPunish:TheBirtho{thePrison,AlanSheridan
(trans. ). New York: Vintage. Originally published as Surveiller et punir: Naissance
de la prison (Paris: Gallimard, 1975).
Foucault, M. (ed. ) 1980a. Herculine Barbin, Being the Recently Discovered Mem-
oirs o{a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite, Richard McDougall (trans. ).
Brighton: Harvester.
Foucault, M. 1980b. Introduction to Herculine Barbin: Being the Recently Dis-
covered Memoirs o{ a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite. New York:
Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980c. "Body/Power". In Power! I<nowledge: Selected Interviews and
OtherWritings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall,]. Mepham
& K. Soper (trans. ), 55-62. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980d. "Truth and Power". In Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews
and Other Writings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 109-33. New York: Pantheon.
189
? ? MICHEL FOU CAULT: KEY CONCEPTS
Foucault, M. 1980e. "Power and Strategies". In Power/Knowledge: Selected Inter- v i e w s a n d O t h e r Wr i t i n g s , 1 9 7 2 - 1 9 7 7 , C . G o r d o n ( e d . ) , C . G o r d o n , L . M a r s h a l l , ]. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 134-45. NewYork: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1980f. "The Politics of Health in the Eighteenth Century". In Power/ Knowledge: SelectedInterviews and OtherWritings 1972-1977, C. Gordon (ed. ), C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham & K. Soper (trans. ), 166-82. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 19801). "Power, Moral Values, and the Intellectual". IMEC (Insti- tut Memoirs de ! 'Edition Contemporaine), Caen, France. Archival identification number FCL2. A02-06.
Foucault, M. 1980h. "Christianity and Confession". IMEC (lnstitut Memoirs de ! 'Edition Contemporaine), Caen, France.
Archival identification number FCL3. 4, FCL2 A03-04.
Foucault, M. 1982a. "The Subject and Power". In Michel Foucault: Beyond Struc- turalism and Hermeneutics, H. Dreyfus & P. Rabinow (eds), 208-26. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Foucault, M. 1982b. I, Pierre Riviere, having slaughtered my mother, my sister, and my brother: A Case ofParricide in the 19th Century. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.
Foucault, M. 1984a. "What is Enlightenment? " In The Foucault Reader, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 32-50. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1984b. "Nietzsche, Genealogy, History". In The Foucault Reader, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 76-100. New York: Pantheon.
Foucault, M. 1986. The History ofSexuality, Volume III: The Care ofthe Self, R. Hurley (trans. ). NewYork: Pantheon. Originally published asHistoiredelasexu- alite, val. III: Le Souci de soi (Paris: Gallimard, 1984).
Foucault, M. 1988. "Truth, Power, Self: An Interview with Michel Foucault". In Technologies ofthe Self: A Seminar with Michel Foucault, L. Martin, H. Gutman & P. Hutton (eds), 9-15. Amherst, MA: University ofMassachusettsPress.
Foucault, M. 1 990a. The History ofSexuality, Volume I: An Introduction, R. Hurley (trans. ). New York: Vintage. Originally published as Histoire de la sexualite, val. I : La Volante de savoir (Paris: Gallimard, 1976).
Foucault, M. 1990b. The History ofSexuality, Volume II: The Use ofPleasure, R. Hurley (trans. ). NewYork: Vintage. OriginallypublishedasHistoiredefasexualite, val. II: ];Usage des plaisirs (Paris: Gallimard, 1984).
Foucault, M. 1990c. "Critical Theory/Intellectual History". In Michel Foucault: P o l i t i c s , P h i l o s o p h y , C u l t u r e . I n t e r v i e w s a n d O t h e r Wr i t i n g s 1 9 7 7 - 1 9 8 4 , L . K r i t z - man (ed. ), A. Sheridan & others (trans. ), 17-46. London: Routledge.
Foucault, M. 1990d. "Practicing Criticism". InMichelFoucault: Politics, Philosophy, Culture. Interviews and Other Writings 1 9 77-1 9 84, L. Kritzman (ed. ), A. Sheridan & others (trans. ), 152-6. London: Routledge.
Foucault,M. 1990e. "Qu'est-cequeIacritique? "BulletindelaSocieteFran<;aisede Philosophie 84(2): 35-63.
Foucault, M. 199 1a. "How an 'Experience Book' is Born". In Remarks on Marx, R. ]. Goldstein & ]. Cascaito (trans. ), 25-42. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1991b. "Questions of Method". In The Foucault Effect: Studies in Governmentality, G. Burchell, C. Gordon & P. Miller (eds), 73-86. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Foucault, M. 1991c. "Governmentality". In The Foucault Effect: Studies in Gov- enzmentality, G. Burchell, C. Gordon & P. Miller (eds), 87-104. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
? ? 190
? BI BLIOGRAPHY
Foucault, M. 1994. "The Ethics of Care for the Self as the Practice of Freedom". In The Final Foucault, J. W Bernauer and D. Rasmussen (eds), 1-20. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Foucault, M. 1996a. "The Ethics of the Concern for the Self as a Practice of Free- dom". In Foucault Live: Collected Interviews 1961-1984, S. Lotringer (ed. ), 432-49. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1996b. "The Return of Morality". In Foucault Live: Collected Inter- views 1961-1984, S. Lotringer (ed. ), 465-73. NewYork: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997a. The Politics ofTruth, S. Lotringer & L. Hochroth (eds). New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997b. "What is Critique? " In The Politics of'Huth, S. Lotringer & L. Hochroth (eds), 23-82. New York: Semiotext(e).
Foucault, M. 1997c. Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ). New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997d. "Technologies of the Self". In Ethics, Subjectivity and TJ? uth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 223-5 1 . New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997e. "The Ethics of Concern for Self as a Practice of Freedom". In Ethics, SubjectivityandTruth: TheEssentialWorksofMichelFoucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 28 1-301. New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997f. "On the Genealogy of Ethics: An Overview of Work in Progress". In Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 253-80. New York: New Press.
Foucault, M. 1997g. "What is Enlightenment? " In Ethics, Subjectivity and Truth: The Essential Works of Michel Foucault 1 954-1 984, vol. 1, P. Rabinow (ed. ), 3 0 3 - 1 9 . N e w Yo r k : N e w P r e s s .
Foucault, M. 1998. Aesthetics, Method, and Epistemology: The Essential Works ofMichel Foucault 1954-1984, vol. 2, J. Faubion (ed. ). New York: New Press. Foucault, M. 1999a. "On the Government of the Living". In Religion and Culture:
Michel Foucault, J. Carrette (ed. ), 154-7. London: Routledge.
Foucault, M. 1999b.
