One of the concepts Foucault writes about is that of power, including the ways in which it is produced and the different types of power that exist. He argues that there was a movement away from sovereign power or authority to disciplinary power. Disciplinary power is a form of power that provides ways of controlling the operations of the body which imposes docility among individuals. Disciplinary power deals with individuals, in both, body and mind. It is describe as not completely institutional, it has to be continuously exercise by individuals and instruments and techniques are used as a way to reinforce its reproduction. Individuals are socialized into this type of power by continuously exercising and internalizing it at the same time. The goal of disciplinary power is to create obedient and docile individuals. It is the type of power that one is socialized into until, for the majority, it becomes a way of self-policing.
There are three techniques to obtaining a docile body. Foucault calls the first one self of control. This technique is about teaching each individual part of the body a specific skill. In order to fully grasp any skill or activity, one needs to do it in steps putting particular attention to each part of the body. An example of when we do this can be when we first learn how to play a sport. Let’s take a batter for a baseball team as an example. A player first needs to have a good knowledge of the rules and goals of the game. Then he/she needs to start with the basics that would include learning how to hold and swing the bat, how to position your feet, and how to shift your weight. To be able to hit the ball takes practice and it is about having good hand-eye coordination. After the batter gets a good idea of the things he/she has to do, then it is only practice. This takes us to Foucault’s second technique of discipline- object of control. It is about exercising and practicing, it is the technique that one imposes in the body repeatedly to get better coordination in any activity. The third technique is modality. It has to do with the constant supervision of the processes occurring in that specific activity.
For modality, Foucault takes us into the subfield of the art of distribution having to do with space and its subtopics. The first states that the activity requires, to a certain extent, an enclosure space. It says that there needs to be literal physical boundaries. For the baseball batter, the enclosed spaced would have to be the baseball field given that it is the designated space for that particular activity. The second subtopic is the portioning of space. I believe this relates to the division of labor. Whatever the activity, there is different positions that individuals have to take. In the baseball field you have the batters, the pitchers, and the catchers. The third subtopic states that the space must be useful and functional. The last one pertains to parts, meaning bodies, being interchangeable. The space is defined by the function and not by people, so that anyone with the right qualifications can carry out the functionality of that specific activity. Through these ways is how society is able to shape docile bodies, hence achieving disciplinary power.
There are three techniques to obtaining a docile body. Foucault calls the first one self of control. This technique is about teaching each individual part of the body a specific skill. In order to fully grasp any skill or activity, one needs to do it in steps putting particular attention to each part of the body. An example of when we do this can be when we first learn how to play a sport. Let’s take a batter for a baseball team as an example. A player first needs to have a good knowledge of the rules and goals of the game. Then he/she needs to start with the basics that would include learning how to hold and swing the bat, how to position your feet, and how to shift your weight. To be able to hit the ball takes practice and it is about having good hand-eye coordination. After the batter gets a good idea of the things he/she has to do, then it is only practice. This takes us to Foucault’s second technique of discipline- object of control. It is about exercising and practicing, it is the technique that one imposes in the body repeatedly to get better coordination in any activity. The third technique is modality. It has to do with the constant supervision of the processes occurring in that specific activity.
For modality, Foucault takes us into the subfield of the art of distribution having to do with space and its subtopics. The first states that the activity requires, to a certain extent, an enclosure space. It says that there needs to be literal physical boundaries. For the baseball batter, the enclosed spaced would have to be the baseball field given that it is the designated space for that particular activity. The second subtopic is the portioning of space. I believe this relates to the division of labor. Whatever the activity, there is different positions that individuals have to take. In the baseball field you have the batters, the pitchers, and the catchers. The third subtopic states that the space must be useful and functional. The last one pertains to parts, meaning bodies, being interchangeable. The space is defined by the function and not by people, so that anyone with the right qualifications can carry out the functionality of that specific activity. Through these ways is how society is able to shape docile bodies, hence achieving disciplinary power.