Foucault Power and Knowledge

How does Foucault define power? What is power's relationship to knowledge in Foucault's work? In this video we discuss how Foucault understands the relationship between power and knowledge. Foucault's definition of power has been a source of frustration for readers and students for decades. What does Foucault mean by power? How does Foucault's definition of power differ from other traditional accounts of power?

Foucault radically reimagines the traditional relationship between power and knowledge; instead of thinking of knowledge as a pre-requisite for the exercise of power, Foucault says knowledge produces power. Here I discuss the power / knowledge dynamic in Foucault's work, focusing on Foucault's key ideas and some of the problems with Foucault's philosophy.

#Foucault #philosophy #power

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[ehsanakbari]

In Foucault’s view, power comes from relationships. Power is a natural byproduct of the social. Also, crucially, power isn’t necessarily bad. It’s not simply coercion. The writing he did later in life is particularly illuminating as he talked about some of the more positive aspects of power such teacher student relationships.
I hope this clarifies some of your misunderstandings of Foucault.

[MyronKrys]

Hello, I'm a PhD student in my qualifying exam phase so I have been pondering Foucault a lot lately. Thanks for this video. It is very helpful. I saved it to be able to return to. I understand Foucault to say that power is not a top down approach, as you state, but that power is in all. With that premise, I am encouraged that everyone has power. Some people have more power (particularly when acquired through the use of weapons) and some have less, depending on the context. No one is sovereign, in this case. I find this as a hopeful insight, particularly for marginalized and oppressed people groups because they actually have more power than they know. They give more power to those in leadership by placing them in power, for instance. So I believe that it is important to embed into the psychology of the oppressed that they are not power-less but powerful. Furthermore, if we all have power, we all produce knowledge. I am seeing more that particularly in the academy, there is a desire for the acknowledgment of the epistemologies of subaltern voices. Regardless of our sociopolitical status, we all have power and the ability to use and validate our sources of knowledge. Again, thanks for this video.

[larsadams]

Great work, you made Foucault understandable for my pupils at high school level. This channel deserves a bigger following!

[odneidncnjen]

One of the best videos that I watched even I, who is a non-native English speaker, could understand. Thank you, teacher.

[heekia.]

Such an amazing person and eloquent professor. So lucky to have found this channel. Thank you, sir, for helping us understand without making us feel stupid. Top notch!😊

[christianterry-taylor]

Round 9 minutes you make an extremely interesting point and I think it is critical to think about. The point, on which I refer to is when you said, " when we study power, wouldn't it just be the way power wants us to?" To answer your question I would say yes. I think the problem Foucault presents is an extremely depressing but necessary one to ponder. Essentially Foucault is claiming the epistemology(the ways of knowing)are embedded within power and those who wield power. Black Feminist traditions acknowledge a similar point to the one Foucault does and attempts to provide a solution. They (Audre Lorde, Combahee River Collective, Patrica Hill Collins, Beverly Guy-Sheftall, and others) have attempted and have made a Black Feminist epistemology to disrupt power because if they can learn the world and themselves differently, they can understand the power that rules them differently. Again, this can be disputed due to the question of can you develop new ways of knowing when existing in the old ways. However, I think these thinkers serve as an attempt at an solution and progression towards unpacking the flaw of Foucault that you have raised within this video.

[marcpadilla]

I understand Foucalt perfectly. Philosophy is wordy but it ain't difficult to understand. Prejudice, any difference is a matter of perspective and interest. Equality is impossible. Delegating enforcement doesn't diminish the inherent disdain for control and power over the individual or group. Structure is a given. Foucalt is a deconstructionist with no alternative except a different leader.

[meikek.]

Thank you very much for explaining something that up until now, for me has been very hard to grasp. I also would like to say that the combination of your explanation along with the visual additions (animations, pictures) were really helping. Great video!

[TheSwedishGuy]

A little late on my reading schedule at my uni, so I've decided to binge Foucault by watching some videos on YT. And I have to say, you did not dissapoint. Very straightforward and to the point. I am surprised that this channel has such a small following, because this is some high quality content right here!

[mattpiper]

I get dragged deeper and deeper down these philosophical rabbit holes from time to time (usually after i've been stuck down a physics rabbit hole). See you in a week or two, more books to read.
Thanks for the videos

[JeffMPalermo]

These short episodes that you do are wonderful distillations of ideas. Keep it up!

[hoddy]

Thank you! A great video and dissection of Foucault's work- straight forward and to the point- perfect for my pragmatic brain. I would love it if you did a video on Frantz Fanon's work. Kind regards, Danielle from New Zealand. 🙂

[sjr]

Interesting video. In response to your first critique of MF, Foucault always stressed that where there is power there is resistance. Power never exists in a vacuum.

[pianospeedrun]

thanks for the explanation. The last take on power is something I've come to believe myself, that power changes when the situation arises. We end up being proactive as influenced by power. It's hard for me to imagine that there is any internal locus of power, power looks more like an endless web of relationships that we have no control over and that molds existence in real time.
Basically no free will, no agency, just a big chain reaction going on that we're witnessing / partaking in.
(Not saying my way of seeing things is healthy, I spend hours every day trying to get out of bed, no job no income no gf no nada)

[crusherjones]

I always just remember it as Power/Knowledge, with the "/" being the key there.

[katharinedavis]

This was it! This finally made Foucault make sense. Thank you...seems too small a thing to say. You didn't need to produce this in the quality and clarity that you did, but I (we?) are so grateful that you did!

[sarmadshahbaz]

Thanks for being alive. What a great explanation with touches of Greeks and relating it to Foucault.

[zpasijplays]

Knowledge is only subjected to power because power limits knowledge. If you want to be power you'll have to find new knowledge in order to overcome present power then you will be the power limiting your knowledge because you don't want knowledge to catch up.

[jdzentrist]

Fascinated by the image here given by the professor--power "circulates." Sounds like the THAT "in which, and through which we move and have our being." Indeed power appears to be the relations between individuals. Rather, this Geist, as it were, might be prior to "individuals" and "subjectivity." Or it might just be another word for the Cartesian "subject" or Fichte's "Ego." Yet another analogy: intentionality. Fascinated also by the notion that F. "turns everything upside down, " so to speak. The body is not the prison of the soul; rather, the soul is the prison of the body.

[sameersawdekar]

Very precise content on Foucault. Thanks for sharing