FOUCAULT, FOUCAULDIANS AND SOCIOLOGY

This paper considers the application of Foucauldian perspectives withi n sociology. While Foucault's epistemology has generated novel histori cal and philosophical interpretations, when transposed to sociology, p roblems arise. The first of these concerns the association of knowledg e and power, and the concept of 'discourse'. Foucault suggested that t here are 'rules' of discursive formation which are extraneous to the ' non-discursive' realm of 'reality'. This formulation is consequently b oth deterministic and incapable of supplying explanations of why some practices become discursive which others do not. This determinism is r eflected in some sociological analyses of embodiment, offering a model of the 'body' which is passive, and incapable of resisting power/know ledge. Secondly, Foucault's notion of the 'self' moves to the other ex treme, inadequately addressing the constraints which affect the fabric ation of subjectivity. Sociological accounts do not always recognize t he ambiguities which consequently result from efforts to use Foucauldi an positions. It is argued that post-structuralists other than Foucaul t may offer more to sociology.