One of the main questions that has preoccupied Foucault scholars is that whether his views on power provide some possibilities for agency and revolution. These scholars also have debated whether his stance toward Iranian revolution can in any way be compatible with his theories on power and freedom. ...
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One of the main questions that has preoccupied Foucault scholars is that whether his views on power provide some possibilities for agency and revolution. These scholars also have debated whether his stance toward Iranian revolution can in any way be compatible with his theories on power and freedom. In this essay, I will consider the roles freedom and subjectivity play in Foucault’s works, especially in his writings on Iran revolution. According to Michel Foucault, when power has pervaded every sphere of human life, an important possibility for subjectivity can be found in “spiritual exercises”, a series of exercises for self-cultivation. The Iranian revolution represented these spiritual exercises, since many revolutionists were engaged in internal self-fashioning and external changing at the same time. The French scholar believed that, because of its esoteric teachings, Shi’ite Islam provides these chances for freedom. Clearly, these conclusions were not easily acceptable to Western audiences, who are not accustomed to these categories.
