When Foucault talks about the control of activity, he describes five main aspects of the rules to which time and activity are bound to each other: the time-table, the temporal elaboration of the act, the correlation of the body and the gesture, the body-object articulation, and exhaustive use. There are complex examples of these aspects but there is also one simple example that applies to these five aspects individually: a game called “Red light, green light, dynamite boom.”
The way that this game is played is that one person is essentially in control of the game and all other players are trying to gain that position. To begin, the player in control faces one direction with his/her back to the rest of the players, who are standing at a decent distance (approximately 25 yards away). The person in control yells loud enough for all the players to hear “red light, green light, dynamite, boom!” In the time that this phrase is being yelled, the players run as fast as they can to try to reach the player in control. Once the player in control yells boom, he or she immediately turns around all of the chasers have to freeze and not show any sudden movements—if they do, they are “out” and no longer in the running to become the next person in control. The process continues until someone reaches the player in control and the game starts all over again.
Foucault writes about one aspect of activity as having a time table. In this game, the players know that there is a certain time frame in which they have to reach the person in control. They know that right after the word “dynamite” is the word “boom” and that word is an indication that they have to immediately stop all movement. Foucault writes that time-tables generally have three methods “—establish rhythms, impose particular occupations, regulate the cycles of repetition—were soon to be found in schools, workshops and hospitals” (Foucault 149). Not only does this game have rhythm—the idea that “red light, green light, dynamite, boom” is repeated over and over, but that time frame doesn’t generally change. Even if the player says the phrase faster or slower, it generally has the same rhythm no matter what.
The second aspect of the control of activity is temporal elaboration of the act. He writes “it is rather a collective and obligatory rhythm, imposed from the outside; it is a ‘programme’; it assures the elaboration of the act itself; it controls its development and its stages from the inside” (Foucault 152). In other words, the time is not determined by the players. The chasers in the game have no control over the amount of time that the player in control will say the phrase. They can say it as fast or as slow as they please and the chasers must abide by this rule or they will lose the game.
“Everything must be called upon to form the support of the act required. A well-disciplined body forms the operational context of the slightest gesture” (152). In other words, body movement is directly related to time. In the game, it is a requirement to both be in action when the game requires it and to completely stop action when required. This is directly related to body-movement and time because if either one of these factors is out of sync (e.g. moving when the body is supposed to be idle or vice-versa), you are eliminated from the game.
Breaking down the articulation of body versus object is the fourth aspect, and it is similar to body movement in relation to time, but not entirely the same. Foucault writes “It consists of a breakdown of the total gesture into two parallel series that of the parts of the body to be used (right hand, left hand, different fingers of the hand, knee, eye, elbow, etc.) and that of the parts of the object manipulated” (Foucault 153). When natural starting and stopping action, we tend to make the stopping action look as natural as possible. However in this game, the object is to convince the player in control that we are completely idle and sometimes that requires us to manipulate our movement in terms of convincing the player in control. In other words, the manipulation of our bodies has to be in sync with our movement, or we will fail to convince the player in control that we are fully idle.
The final aspect of control of activity according to Foucault is non-idleness, or exhaustive use. He writes “it was the principle of non-idleness: it was forbidden to waste time, which was counted by God and paid for by men; the time-table was to eliminate the danger of wasting it- a moral offence and economic dishonesty” (Foucault 154). Although the minutes or seconds wasted is not a matter of life or death such as explained in the passage, it is a matter of winning or losing. The most important aspect of the game is to be the first person to reach the player in control. That means that you have to use as much time to be productive as you are given—you have to run as fast and as far as you can within the time-frame that the words “red light, green light, dynamite and boom” are said.
The whole idea of activity and time is that they are essentially related and in five different aspects, as Foucault describes. The entire premise of “Red light, green light, dynamite, boom” is the relation between activity and time. If one of these aspects is flawed, you lose the game, similarly the actual relation between activity and time would not exist without these five aspects.
Bibliography
Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. New York: Pantheon Books.
The way that this game is played is that one person is essentially in control of the game and all other players are trying to gain that position. To begin, the player in control faces one direction with his/her back to the rest of the players, who are standing at a decent distance (approximately 25 yards away). The person in control yells loud enough for all the players to hear “red light, green light, dynamite, boom!” In the time that this phrase is being yelled, the players run as fast as they can to try to reach the player in control. Once the player in control yells boom, he or she immediately turns around all of the chasers have to freeze and not show any sudden movements—if they do, they are “out” and no longer in the running to become the next person in control. The process continues until someone reaches the player in control and the game starts all over again.
Foucault writes about one aspect of activity as having a time table. In this game, the players know that there is a certain time frame in which they have to reach the person in control. They know that right after the word “dynamite” is the word “boom” and that word is an indication that they have to immediately stop all movement. Foucault writes that time-tables generally have three methods “—establish rhythms, impose particular occupations, regulate the cycles of repetition—were soon to be found in schools, workshops and hospitals” (Foucault 149). Not only does this game have rhythm—the idea that “red light, green light, dynamite, boom” is repeated over and over, but that time frame doesn’t generally change. Even if the player says the phrase faster or slower, it generally has the same rhythm no matter what.
The second aspect of the control of activity is temporal elaboration of the act. He writes “it is rather a collective and obligatory rhythm, imposed from the outside; it is a ‘programme’; it assures the elaboration of the act itself; it controls its development and its stages from the inside” (Foucault 152). In other words, the time is not determined by the players. The chasers in the game have no control over the amount of time that the player in control will say the phrase. They can say it as fast or as slow as they please and the chasers must abide by this rule or they will lose the game.
“Everything must be called upon to form the support of the act required. A well-disciplined body forms the operational context of the slightest gesture” (152). In other words, body movement is directly related to time. In the game, it is a requirement to both be in action when the game requires it and to completely stop action when required. This is directly related to body-movement and time because if either one of these factors is out of sync (e.g. moving when the body is supposed to be idle or vice-versa), you are eliminated from the game.
Breaking down the articulation of body versus object is the fourth aspect, and it is similar to body movement in relation to time, but not entirely the same. Foucault writes “It consists of a breakdown of the total gesture into two parallel series that of the parts of the body to be used (right hand, left hand, different fingers of the hand, knee, eye, elbow, etc.) and that of the parts of the object manipulated” (Foucault 153). When natural starting and stopping action, we tend to make the stopping action look as natural as possible. However in this game, the object is to convince the player in control that we are completely idle and sometimes that requires us to manipulate our movement in terms of convincing the player in control. In other words, the manipulation of our bodies has to be in sync with our movement, or we will fail to convince the player in control that we are fully idle.
The final aspect of control of activity according to Foucault is non-idleness, or exhaustive use. He writes “it was the principle of non-idleness: it was forbidden to waste time, which was counted by God and paid for by men; the time-table was to eliminate the danger of wasting it- a moral offence and economic dishonesty” (Foucault 154). Although the minutes or seconds wasted is not a matter of life or death such as explained in the passage, it is a matter of winning or losing. The most important aspect of the game is to be the first person to reach the player in control. That means that you have to use as much time to be productive as you are given—you have to run as fast and as far as you can within the time-frame that the words “red light, green light, dynamite and boom” are said.
The whole idea of activity and time is that they are essentially related and in five different aspects, as Foucault describes. The entire premise of “Red light, green light, dynamite, boom” is the relation between activity and time. If one of these aspects is flawed, you lose the game, similarly the actual relation between activity and time would not exist without these five aspects.
Bibliography
Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. New York: Pantheon Books.