Most people emphasize freedom of speech, or simply the freedom to express oneself through their use of the Internet or social media. However, the peaceful days of enjoying one’s privacy are no longer attainable. Humans owe this lack of mental solitude to the remarkable theory of Panopticism created by Foucault. The panopticon represents so much more then just a discipline prison, but also a concept of the constant surveillance of society. The panopticon was special in the way that it did not discipline prisoners physically, yet mentally. While the fact that Foucault’s ideas of the panopticon were used in the eighteenth century, the Internet and social media act as an immaterial panopticon of our modern world. Analyzing the operations of the
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People believe that the use of social media like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter is just fun entertainment and has no harm over us. However, it creates an anonymous form of control over the modern person. This results in a virtual prison in which others are constantly watching them. Before analyzing the spawn of the panopticon, one must initially analyze the panopticon and its creator’s intentions and ideals. Foucault’s main thesis is that the ultimate demonstration of power is through the simple form of observation. The design of the prison is made that the prisoners are separate from one another by barriers but can be viewed by a single person in the central tower. This person can see them but they cannot see him, resulting in him having absolute authority. Mirrors are set up around the central tower, making the guard or watcher ambiguous to the prisoners. This environment is described as a “segmented space, observed at every point, in which the individuals are inserted in a fixed place, in which the slightest movements …show more content…
Most of all panopticism is evident in our technological world. The Internet and social media have an aspect of liberation, however this freedom can be very dangerous. People post freely to social media, every post being saved and no matter how “secure” it is, it can be seen by everyone. The Internet is almost as a panopticon with open doors, where the central tower is accessible to anyone who desires it. Facebook newsfeeds are like a panoption in which users are simultaneously in a visible cell and in the anonymous viewing tower. However, there is no one source of confirmed power for Facebook. Everyone is being controlled and monitored by someone else, all contributing to the panopticon. Anyone and everyone can access your private and personal data within seconds. We become the “central tower” when we check up on other people and their lives. We hold the sense of power when we scroll through someone’s Facebook or Intsagram. Foucault writes that, “Our society is one not of spectacle, but of surveillance.” Thus, we act as the “surveillance” of others. Foucault wrote his essay in the eighteenth century, far before the Internet was developed. Yet, the similarities of the panopticon and social media are so apparent. The Government has access to our email accounts, health records, and profiles. The government has an easy access to our identities. Our generation spends
People believe that the use of social media like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter is just fun entertainment and has no harm over us. However, it creates an anonymous form of control over the modern person. This results in a virtual prison in which others are constantly watching them. Before analyzing the spawn of the panopticon, one must initially analyze the panopticon and its creator’s intentions and ideals. Foucault’s main thesis is that the ultimate demonstration of power is through the simple form of observation. The design of the prison is made that the prisoners are separate from one another by barriers but can be viewed by a single person in the central tower. This person can see them but they cannot see him, resulting in him having absolute authority. Mirrors are set up around the central tower, making the guard or watcher ambiguous to the prisoners. This environment is described as a “segmented space, observed at every point, in which the individuals are inserted in a fixed place, in which the slightest movements …show more content…
Most of all panopticism is evident in our technological world. The Internet and social media have an aspect of liberation, however this freedom can be very dangerous. People post freely to social media, every post being saved and no matter how “secure” it is, it can be seen by everyone. The Internet is almost as a panopticon with open doors, where the central tower is accessible to anyone who desires it. Facebook newsfeeds are like a panoption in which users are simultaneously in a visible cell and in the anonymous viewing tower. However, there is no one source of confirmed power for Facebook. Everyone is being controlled and monitored by someone else, all contributing to the panopticon. Anyone and everyone can access your private and personal data within seconds. We become the “central tower” when we check up on other people and their lives. We hold the sense of power when we scroll through someone’s Facebook or Intsagram. Foucault writes that, “Our society is one not of spectacle, but of surveillance.” Thus, we act as the “surveillance” of others. Foucault wrote his essay in the eighteenth century, far before the Internet was developed. Yet, the similarities of the panopticon and social media are so apparent. The Government has access to our email accounts, health records, and profiles. The government has an easy access to our identities. Our generation spends