Style of Living versus Juridification in Foucault (2014)

Barry Stocker, Style of Living versus Juridification in Foucault, New APPS: Art, Politics, Philosophy, Science Blog, 05 October 2014

I’m making a brief exploration of one of the most significant oppositions in Foucaut’s thought, which has not been discussed that much in my experience, but I may well have overlooked some vast bibliography. In any case, there is a major polarity in Foucault between the style of living in antiquity, related to care of the self, and in which ‘style’ can be replaced by ‘aesthetics’ or ‘techne’, while ‘living’ can be replaced by ‘existence’, in ways I do not think make much difference to the current discussion. There is also a relation with the discussions of the government of the self and the use of pleasure. I am not getting into references and precise context, but outlining the general field.