From: "JONATHAN RUBIN" <j_rubin-AT-hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: On the impact
Date: Wed, 09 Sep 1998 02:34:59 PDT


On the impact - Foucault, specifically his writings on the Panopticon 
and disciplinary practices of the body (particularly in the sense of 
training) have had quite a large impact on Business Studies. I've never 
quite worked out whether this is a Good Thing or a Bad Thing. 

As for Foucault's role in the anti-psychiatry movement and his impact, 
that has been completely misunderstood. "Dumping people on the streets" 
is not some kind of logical consequence of "abolishing Victorian 
asylums" - so that although Foucault might be read as anti-asylum (I 
always prefer to just say suspicious) this does not lead him to say dump 
them all out on the street with no back-up or support. 
I've found Foucault of limited value in analysing these post-asylum 
psychiatric practices.  In Briatin this event was named "Care in the 
Community" and its actual effects sound like they have been similar to 
the States. Regarding DSV, its not that Foucault has "had no effect" but 
medical, psychiatric, commercial, cultural practices are no longer what 
they were in the nineteenth century. DSV is a very good example for 
demonstrating the ways in which, regarding our practices towards 
insanity we are no longer in "The Age of Reason". DSV relentlessly 
demonstrates the extension of mental unhealth. Asylums demarcated a 
divide between them and us that rigorously mapped onto a split, a chsam, 
an abyss between sane and insane. This no longer exists. This can be 
vividly demonstrated by looking at some tests for shizophrenia where 
everybody tests positive for some of them and you are only in trouble if 
you test positive for too many. 
Its the same with sickness; it is no longer an all or nothing situation. 
The corporate strategy by the makers of Viagara is clear - that the only 
way to make serious profits is to get everybody, men, women impotent 
non-impotent to take it - and by doing so to obliterate a firm split 
between them.

Jon.


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