Beyond Capacity

To contribute a conceptual framing for this issue on in/capacitation, the author employs two dimensions of the discourse around capacity in the work of Michel Foucault between 1974 and 1984. The first discourse involves his critical estimation of how disciplinary subjects are shaped through capacity “in a relation of strict subjection” from Discipline and Punish (completed in August 1974). The second discourse (between 1980 and 1984) turns to Foucault’s critique of strict subjection through his developing engagement with ethics in ancient Western contexts. The possibilities for challenging capacity formation and modern subjection are opened through ancient Cynic attention to deformation and challenges to authority in word and deed, in short, as a way of life.