The Study Of The Foucault’s Power Theory

Foucault’s theory of power is generated after the World War II, when the social contradictions accumulated in France and totalitarianism was undergoing major development. A decent family environment and abundant educational background are the prerequisite for the power theory of Foucault, while the changes and transitions of French social contradictions are the direct cause of Foucault’s theory of power. The effect of post-modernism and post-structuralism thoughts, as well as Nietzsche, Marx, Reich’s power theory, gradually led to Foucault’s thinking of power. This is the prerequisite for the thinking of Foucault power generation and the formation of its new cognitive powers. If Nietzsche’s "will to power" directly lead to Foucault’s theory about the basic connotation of power, then postmodernism and post-structuralism Foucault’s thoughts directly affect the judgment of the existing form of power, and the two power cognitive model from side promote the content and form of Foucault’s power thinking path. Foucault uses the inquiry approach of “The Archaeology of Knowledge” and “The Genealogy of Power” methods deconstruct and re-construct the structure of power. Power is microcosmic, are technology-oriented; power step down from the altar and walk into the folk; power has become an essential element of links the modern society; power from brutality move towards civilization; people became the core of power. Foucault on this basis interpreted the power as "dot" and produced disciplinary social theory and governing the state theory.Foucault’s theory of power inherited the essence of Marxism, also the Marx’s critical spirit and practical spirit. Meanwhile, he dialectical analyzed and inquired the powers to achieve a combination of micro perspective and macro perspective of cognition. Undertaking inherited from history, while development exploited future. Although there are a lot of limitations about Foucault’s power theory, but on the basis of inheriting the essence of Marxism, widens the new field of cognitive powers, enriches the theory of governance, and re-paraphrases power and freedom, which has a significance meaning on the updating, improvement and development of the traditional theory of power.