biopower

is a coherent political technology which emerged in the seventeenth century. It is first concerned with scientific categories of human beings (think of species, population, race, gender, sexual practices, etc.). Secondly it is concerned with disciplinary power, or the regulation of individual bodies.

A distinction that is black and white so that things are thought of as only one way or the other. 'Power is essentially what dictates its law to sex. Which means first of all that sex is placed by power in a binary system: licit and illicit, permitted and forbidden.' (The History of Sexuality, p.83). Bio-power emerged as a coherent political technology in the seventeenth century. It has two poles or components. First is the pole of scientific categories of human beings (think of species, population, race, gender, sexual practices, etc.). This pole is tied to the practice of confession. The second pole is disciplinary power (which he analyzes in Discipline and Punish, chapter 7). (net)

is a form of governing (or political technology) that emerged in the 18th century involving the creation and manipulation of scientific categories of human beings (i.e. Race, gender, birth rate, fertility).

Foucault tells us that a concern for what he calls 'biopower' emerged in the 18th century around new questions of controlling populations.

is a form of power that regulates social life from its interior, following it, interpreting it, absorbing it, and rearticulating it. Rather than disciplinary power whereby the relationship between power and the individual remained static and contestatory, biopower is characterized by the individual embracing and reactivating it of his or her own accord.

Biopower is a form of power that regulates social life from its interior, following it, interpreting it, absorbing it, and rearticulating it. Power can achieve an effective command over the entire life of the population only when it becomes an integral, vital function of the population only when it becomes an integral, vital function that every individual embraces and reactiveates of his or her own accord. As Foucault says, 'Life has now become. . . an object of power.' The highest function of this power is to invest life through and through, and its primary task is to administer life. Biopower thus refers to a situation in which what is directly at stake in power is the production and reproduction of life.' . . . 'in disciplinary society, then, the relationship between power and the individual remained a static one: the disciplinary invasion of power corresponded to the resistance of the individual. By contrast, when power becomes entirely biopolitical, the whole social body is comprised by power's machine and developed in its virtuality' (Hardt and Negri 2000 24).

is a technology which appeared in the late eighteenth century for managing populations.

a technology which appeared in the late eighteenth century for managing populations.

is a term referring to rationalized attempts to intervene upon vital characteristics.

serves to bring into view a field comprised of more or less rationalized attempts to intervene upon the vital characteristics of human existence human beings' (Rabinow 2006). -- human beings, individually and collectively, as living creatures who are born (Rabinow and Rose).

is a term that highlights an intensification of the body, a problematization of health and its operational terms: It was a question of techniques for maximizing life. The primary concern was. . . The body, vigor, longevity, progeniture, and descent of the classes that 'ruled'.

There was, Foucault claims, ' 'an intensification of the body, a problematization of health and its operational terms: it was a question of techniques for maximizing life. The primary concern was. . . the body, vigor, longevity, progeniture, and descent of the classes that 'ruled' ' (HS 123)' (Dreyfus and Rabinow 140).

is a term used to describe the state's new interest in men in their everyday activities replacing the state's previous focus which was centered on men as subjects with rights and duties.

State power had previously centered on men as subjects with rights and duties. Now the police were concerned with men in their everyday activities, as the essential components of the state's strength and vitality. It was the police and its administrative adjuncts who were charged with men's welfare and with their control'(Dreyfus and Rabinow 139).

is about managing the births, deaths, reproduction and illnesses of a population just as disciplinary power is about training the actions of bodies.

Foucault argues that biopower is a technology which appeared in the late eighteenth century for managing populations. It incorporates certain aspects of disciplinary power. If disciplinary power is about training the actions of bodies, biopower is about managing the births, deaths, reproduction and illnesses of a population.

biopower, n.All

biopower