Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

A brilliant work from the most influential philosopher since Sartre.

In this indispensable work, a brilliant thinker suggests that such vaunted reforms as the abolition of torture and the emergence of the modern penitentiary have merely shifted the focus of punishment from the prisoner's body to his soul.

Michel Foucault's seminal work examines the historical transformation of punishment systems and the emergence of modern disciplinary institutions. This foundational text traces how societies shifted from public executions to systematic imprisonment, revealing the mechanisms of surveillance and control embedded within prisons, schools, and workplaces. Essential reading for understanding power dynamics, social structures, and institutional critique, this philosophical masterpiece challenges conventional assumptions about justice and rehabilitation while offering profound insights into contemporary governance and social organization.