Explain Bantham’s “The Panopticon”.

Jeremy Bentham, an English philosopher and social reformer, conceived the idea of the Panopticon in the late 18th century as a design for a new type of prison. The Panopticon was intended to revolutionize the management and surveillance of inmates while minimizing the need for direct supervision by prison staff.

The central concept of the Panopticon is a circular or semi-circular prison layout with a central observation tower, from which a single observer can see into all of the individual cells arranged around the perimeter. Crucially, the design ensures that inmates cannot see into the observation tower, creating a constant sense of scrutiny and surveillance without the need for constant supervision.

The key innovation of the Panopticon is its psychological effect on the prisoners. Because they are never sure whether they are being watched at any given moment, inmates internalize a sense of self-discipline and control. This internalization of surveillance, Bentham believed, would lead to greater compliance with prison rules and norms, making the Panopticon an instrument of social control and reform.

Furthermore, Bentham proposed that the Panopticon could be adapted for various institutions beyond prisons, such as hospitals, factories, schools, and asylums, where it could be used to monitor and regulate the behavior of inmates, patients, workers, and students.

Although Bentham's Panopticon was never fully realized in his lifetime, the concept has had a lasting impact on the fields of architecture, surveillance studies, and social theory. The Panopticon has become a symbol of modern surveillance society and the pervasive influence of surveillance technologies on individual behavior and societal norms. It continues to provoke debates about the balance between security and privacy, the ethics of surveillance, and the power dynamics inherent in systems of observation and control.