Panopticon and Offices - Essay Example

Panopticon and offices Panopticon prison is circular, and the cells are open to the center so that the guards could see the prisoners from the tower located at the center (Chopra and Ankita 39). This was a drastic change from the traditional design of a prison because of the three functions of the traditional design, it only keeps the first function of enclosing and abandon depriving of light and hiding the place (Foucault 200).the structure system allows the guards who are in the watchtower to watch the prisoner easily with the prisoners not being able to realize that they are on the watch (Rabiger 102). According to Bentham, this structure makes the prisoners behave since they know they can be watched anytime. In an article, Discipline and Punish, Foucault addresses that the panopticon is something more than prisons which can be applied to other structures (Rabiger 33). He thinks that elements of the panopticon are observed in many aspects of our life. He relates a panoptican to an office. The two structures are related with some similarities. The office environment is designed such that it can be able to control the behavior of an individual. There are elements that makes the office similar to a panoptican with the main being that both the structures are able to monitor and change the behavior of an individual. There are several elements that are designed in an office that enables it to watch an individual’s behavior.             The office is mainly build for administrative purposes. The structure is also built to discuss works and create as much as profits for firms. In this office, workers, which could be seemed as prisoners in panopticon, should be effectively utilized to maximize the profits. To achieve the goals and objectives of an organization, an office is designed to fully utilize workers during their working time (Chopra and Ankita 64). A panopticon is also designed to effectively control criminals with this utilitarian belief. It is built to isolates criminals from the society with minimized cost. Minimizing the cost in controlling the criminals benefiting whole society. The similarity of the structures come where both are built to control the activities of those in them with the aim of minimizing cost resulting to benefit. The partitioned structure of an office controls the employees more (Rabiger 50). Every workers who are designed to process works, rather than people who are in position allowed to voluntarily decide their works, are put into partition. This partitioned structure of office allows only a limited visual field to workers and ultimately lead those to focus on their work instead of being distracted by the other things occurred in different seats. In addition, in most office, there is a supervisor who monitors the areas (Chopra and Ankita 84). This environment makes the worker not to get distracted by the activities of the others, but forces them to look at their own desk. This partitioned structure is the similarity between a panopticon and an office. The most important factor of panopticon is imbalanced sight. Prisoners cannot see the person who watches them (Rabiger 50). This structure makes prisoners think they can be watched anytime and make them behave prudently. The similarity is carried to the office structure which allows supervisors to monitor subordinate freely while limiting workers to check whether they are being monitors. In this structure, workers know that they can be watched by their supervisor anytime, so their behaviors are altered thinking they are being watched. In some of the office structures, cameras are installed for supervision. The cameras are officially installed for security reasons, but also function as a mean of surveillance. The devices are able to record behavior of the staff and allow for the correction of the undesired behaviors. Officers with the cameras enable the workers to behave with the assumption that they are being monitored. The similarity comes in panopticon where the prisoners can be watched continuously and make them unaware of when they were monitored making them behave all the times. There is imbalanced sight in panopticon, workers in office also internalize themselves that they are being monitored all day and this internalization influences their behaviors. The other mean of surveillance is through the use of the computers. Network and computers used in office are the properties of firm and the manager of the company has access to all the computers and can monitor the activities that are done with them and can also check the programs that are run by them. Companies use their own communication systems such as specific message program, so it can be easily checked by the director of the company. Thus, whenever communication issues occur within company, IT team can check the preserved records of the events. In the panopticon system, there are no physical obstacles such as locks or chains limiting prisoners. This shows that there is no restriction in the structures. The structure only separate the prisoners and make them believe that they are always on the watch. (Chopra and Ankita 39). The two structures has the same goal why they were built to ensure supervision of those under it. Even though there are similarities between panopticon and office, there are essential differences between them. The main differences between the two structures is that they have different direction regarding how to change workers and prisoners’ behavior. In panopticon, the main goal is to make prisoners follow the rule of prisoners and make them calm. In the office setting the primary goal is to maximize worker’s productivity. Both aim to effectively control people’s behavior, but one tries to minimize prisoner’s abnormal behaviors and the other tries to maximize worker’s work productivity. The two structures also differ in the type of people in which they handle. In panopticon, the people who are controlled are criminals and are not allowed to leave the prison until they are officially permitted to leave. However, in office, workers are voluntarily working for the firm and are compensated. They are allowed more freedom than criminals and they can even choose to leave the office at their will when there is need. Office workers at times are promoted and can be in the rank to supervise others which cannot occur in panopticon. The panopticon changes prisoners’ behavior using surveillances and letting prisoners know the existence of surveillance. This panopticon’s way of controlling their prisoner’s behavior is very effective since making prisoners be aware of surveillance allows observers not to watch prisoners all day, but make prisoners internalize the surveillance and behave more properly thinking they are being watched all day. The offices without cameras do not allow all the time supervision of the workers and some of the activities when the manager is not in the place cannot be identified. Conclusion According to Foucault, the panopticon can be applied to many other structures and office is an example where many elements of panopticon are observed. Structures can be similar with most of the activities that take place inside them despite the way the structures are built. Examining the goal of office structure and surveillance means lead to the conclusion that office is designed similar to panopticon. Both panopticon and office is designed to change people’s behavior to achieve their own goals. Both panopticon and office asymmetrically give visual field and let them know they can be watched all the time. There is no application of for changes. References Chopra, R. K., and Ankita Bhatia. Office Management. Rev. ed. Mumbai: Himalaya Pub. House, 2009. Print Rabiger, Joanna. Daily Prison Life. Broomall, PA: Mason Crest, 2003. Print. Read More