Philosophical Diagnoses And Care For The Present

Foucault believes that the the relationship between philosophy and politics is permanent and fundamental.If one takes the history of the care of the self in Greek philosophy,the relationship with politics is obvious.So,'power'/'pouvoir',is that Foucault wants to question,but not the fundamental care of Foucault' thoughts.The analysis of power is the the way of Foucault' questioning,but not the end of Foucault' political thoughts.Foucault' political philosophy is the type of philosophy that Foucault claims that he has especially wanted to question politics,and to bring to light in the political field,as in the field of historical and philosophical interrogation. some problems that had not been recognized there before.He means that the questions he has been to ask are not determined by a preestablished outlook and do not tend the realization of some definite political project.In other words,the care of Foucault' political interrogation is always 'the present','the life',and the life of the present,and the life of ourselves of the history of the prsent.So,for Foucault,the really important question is always whether one could go beyond the relations of power and live in the outside of them.Therefore,the way of political thoughts of Foucault has been changed from'humanism'to'post- humanism',from'autre/others'to'soi / the self',from'politics'to'ethics'.The end of political philosophy of Foucault has been turned, from power relations that are always the others of the life of ourselves and opposite to our life, to the ontology of ourselves of the history of the present,to 'arts of life'('les arts de l'existence'),'the aesthetics of existence'(l'esthetique de l' existence).In other words,the final political philosophy of Foucault has been turned into politics of friendship(politiques de l'amitie)and the community of friendship as a way of life.Thereby,Foucault'political attitude is ethical and Foucault' political philosophy is,in any case,politics as an ethics.Foucault would more or less agree with the idea that in fact what interests him is much more morals than politics,more the care of the self of ourselves than presenting an overall political theory.In fact,Foucault believes precisely that the forms of totalization offered by politics are always very limited.Thereby,Foucault has been attemping,to the contrary,apart from any totalization-which would be at once abstract and limiting-to open up problems that are as concrete and general as possible,problems that approach politics from behind and cut across soceities on the diagonal,problems that at once constituents of our history of the present.In other words,the way of Foucault' questioning politics has been necessary to try to raise these problems both as present questions and as historical ones,as moral,epistemological,and political problems.Foucault believes that by asking this sort of ethico-epistemologico-political question,the interaction between theory and practice and the linking between thinking and acting,are connected in an ethical sense,but the result has to be called political.This is the aim of Foucault's thoughts of his political philosophy.As is known to all,Foucault is learned and versatile.He has had extensive knowledge and profound scholarship.At the same time,Foucault is proficient in "Aufheben'.For Foucault,his 'interlocutors' are various and diverse,so,we can not say one of thinkers in ancient or modern times is his model or ancestor.At the same time,many earlier thinkers and elder philosophers have important and permenent effect on him,especially Nietzsche,Marx,and ancitent Greek philosophers,etc.We cannot say that Foucault is a nihilist that merely clings obstinately to his course of anti-traditionalism.At the same time,we cannot say Foucault is a utopian,and finally,we cannot say Foucault is an anarchist.Foucault advocates friendship as a way of life and the community of friendship,and it proves that Foucault does not believes one can live in the outside of political community.Simutaneously,the problem that shows clearly in his words or manner and hovers in his mind is that we can live in the world that 'God' and 'Man' have been dead and disapeared by 'le souci de soi'('the care of the self').In other words,Foucault's political philosophy not only trys to destory the old,but also to establish the new.For Foucault' philosophical thoughts,philosophy and life are inseparable and firmly connected,especially his political philosophical thoughts.For Foucault,philosophy is a 'philosophy-as-life',and life is a tpye of 'philosophical life',especially his political philosophy and his action to question politics.Ultimately,Foucault surpasses pure relationship of power and turns anonymous relationship between power and power into tensional relationship between power and the self.For Foucault's philosophical diagnoses of the times and his care for the present,Foucault's political philosophy is a type of 'medical' philosophy.In conclusions,Foucault's political philosophy is not only a type of politics that aims to revolt,but also a type of politics that aims to become reconciled with the self and the community.