Foucault- Discipline and Punish "Complete and Austere Institutions"

Foucault argues that the prison has been integrated into our society so deeply that it has become a crucial element of society. We have no other options. Punishment revolves around the prison system.  We can only talk about what to do with prison, we give no alternative solutions. Prisons are very effective because they force open the world of the prisoner. All othe prisoner's actions are taken into account and monitered. The main focus of the prison is the stripping away of freedom. The secondary goal is reformation of character. I think that in our mnodern age, we have begun to stray away from the prison idea that Foucault talks about. There are an increasing number of alternatives to prison, like community service. Eventhough community service is monitored it is still more free than the prison itself. The idea behind community service is not necessarily reformation of character, but paying back the community rather. I believe this is a start to an alternaive to the prison idea.