A Conception of Power

Although the concept of power as intentional influence is by no means original in its basic contours, Foucault developed it into a conception of power with some peculiar and illuminating aspects. That is the conception reconstructed in this chapter. We first consider how Foucault moved from a conflictualist account of power (in his ultra-radical phase) to a nonconflictualist one (in his pragmatic phase), and we identify as well the main concerns behind this shift. We then consider how the attention he paid to the indefinite multiplicity of forms of power led him to a particularly broad understanding of power, ranging from highly intrusive forms of control to subtle forms of orientation and calculated inaction. The chapter also investigates the role played by the ‘cognitive’ aspect of power—the knowledge brought to bear in influencing the actions of others—and its place within the multidimensional nexus between power and knowledge, focusing in particular on the ‘techniques’ of power: rationally developed methods aimed at making power more efficient. Finally, the turn to one of Foucault’s most famous claims, that of the pervasiveness of power, looking at how it comes into form in the transition from the ultra-radical conception to the pragmatic one.