DD121 TMA04 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

DD121 TMA04 - Essay Example Surveillance is a form of control and therefore a closed circuit form of the exercise of institutional power. Power works in a hidden way and ‘provokes’ people to behave â€Å"in ways that make it difficult for them to do otherwise† (Hughes, 2004: 34). However, Foucault explains how we â€Å"take it upon ourselves† (ibid) to control our own behaviour. Furthmore, he observes that even though â€Å"we are free to act in all kinds of ways, we choose to constrain our behaviour† (ibid). So, â€Å"there is no overarching power which brings us into line† (ibid). Instead, we choose ourselves to constrain our own behaviour. People behave within this ‘framework of choices’. This perspective makes power a positive thing and this is the understanding behind how power works, termed ‘the powers of provocation’. For example, in a ‘provocative’ advertising campaign people are informed but have the ultimate power of choice. A political ideology has these characteristics: It is â€Å"a cluster of ideas that both describe societies, propose moral and practical alternatives, and are aligned with political movements† (Hughes, 2004: 46). Examples are conservatism and feminism. In conservatism the basic desire is to conserve. For example, it upholds a traditional view of the family, in which both parents have defined roles and moral responsibilities, the family serves to protect children, and above all that this is the natural â€Å"god-given way of ordering our lives† (Hughes, 2004: 60). Such ideas about social structures and institutions, about what they are and how they ought to be, promoted by exercising power are political ideologies. Thus, the concept of different political ideologies arises from different social values, and ideas for ordering power. Most people live in families but this institution is changing dramatically in response to increasing