discontinuity

is, along with 'break' and 'difference', a challenge to notions of cause, effect, progress, destiny, tradition and influence in history insofar as they undermine philosophical notions of unchanging essences in history.

Foucault continually uses the principles of discontinuity, break and difference in his analyses, in order to undermine philosophical notions of unchanging essences in history. These essences include the 'Man' and 'human nature' and 'great man' of humanist philosophies. Discontinuity also challenges notions of cause, effect, progress, destiny, tradition and influence in history.

is culture in a process of starting to to think things in a new way, to change not content or form but the very rules of what is to be accepted within the scope of the 'scientifically true'.

Within the space of a few years, a culture sometimes ceases to think as it had been thinking up till then and begins to think other things in a new way. These changes are, Foucault explains, the sign of a modification in the rules of formation of statements of what is accepted as scientifically true. It does not mean that it is a change of content, nor a change of theoretical form. It is a question of what governs statements, and the way in which they governeach other so as to constitute a change in their internal 'regime' of power. (net)

discontinuity, n.Definitions

discontinuity