Foucault for beginners

When the philosopher Michel Foucault died in 1984, his work was described as "the most important event of thought in our century".

This text puts his work in its philosophical and political context, and explores his mission to expose the links between knowledge and power in human society.Foucault overturned many assumptions about madness, sexuality and criminality, and highlighted the brutal social practices of confinement, confession, and discipline.

The book describes his approach to these problems through psychiatry and clinical medicine, and shows how his political beliefs led to conflict with police on the streets of Paris.

Foucault's unorthodox lifestyle is also compared with the aspects of pleasure and desire which he promoted in his writing.