The Genealogy Of Western Regimes Of Pleasure

Pursuit of pleasure and happiness,in the contemporary society,has become the ultimate goal in one's life and legitimacy foundation of national governance.Pleasure and happiness became ethical obligations and ideologies have inseparable relation to the project of modernity,"The greatest happiness of greatest number" has become a common goal of all kinds of social construction scheme since the Enlightenment.But those modernity commitments to the greatest happiness has not made people lived in the conditions of modernity experience the feelings of cash,this is evidently demonstrated by the Bentham's "original panopticon configuration" which comes from "greatest happiness principle" and aimed at achieving the greatest happiness of greatest number,have evolved into the "panopticism" which Foucault called as the foundation of a new political dissection technique and the physics of power,even turned into a "oppressive overall surveillance society" in the development process of modernity.Paradoxically,though the modernity project to a large extent is not fulfill its the greatest happiness planning and commitments,occasionally practice the reality of totalitarian domination in the name of the greatest happiness,kinds of happiness propaganda and pleasure declaration,not disappeared but rather quite prevailing in today's society.To explore the ins and outs of the above paradox situation,this article defined the process that the project of modernity which promises the greatest happiness but actually has evolved into a disciplined and surveillance society as "the ecstatic process of modernity",and defined the human behavior disposition of "pursuit pleasure and avoid pain" which is the philosophical anthropology hypothesis of the greatest happiness principle as the "will to pleasure",thereby come up with the research topic:the relationship of will to pleasure and the ecstatic process of modernity.Through constructing an ecstatic theory of modernity based on emotional perspective,this dissertation established a research framework which sets the basic rhythm of the ecstatic process of modernity as its diachronic clue and the Befindlichkeit opened by the basic Stimmung of the ecstatic process of modernity as its Synchronic cross-section,then concretely analyzed the genealogy of regimes of pleasure in the ecstatic process of modernity.Around the discussions about the ethical regime of pleasure,the technical regime of pleasure and the aesthetical regime of pleasure enable us to see the complexity,dynamics and limitations of modernity with a new perspective,and at the same time enable us try to understand the situation and trend of emotion under the condition of modernity.This dissertation comes out the following research conclusions:First,the ecstatic process of modernity is an existent activity which is historically unfolds its own Zu-sein/Ex-istenz possibilities.This existent activity arises from the will to pleasure which is with pursue pleasure and avoid pain as its innate mechanism,and the will to pleasure on micro level is a kind of physiological instinct and nature conatus,but on macro level is a stream of vehement collective emotion currents.As a stream of vehement collective emotion currents,the will to pleasure has its own emotional activity rhythm,and this emotional activity rhythm is foundation of the basic rhythm of the ecstatic process of modernity per se.Second,the will to pleasure appears its self with different styles in different historical stages.Basically speaking,the ethical regime of pleasure,the technical regime of pleasure and the aesthetical regime of pleasure which consist of the ecstatic process of modernity are only three presence styles of the will to pleasure in this historical process.Although the will to pleasure falls into time always aims at fulfill itself,however,whether it can realize own does not depend on itself but subject to the contingency of social and historical situation.Not only ways and elements which the will to pleasure can use to realize itself is full of possibility,but its presence styles in different stages and roles in this process is also undecided,that is why the different regimes of pleasure which have different main pleasure form,roles and basic configuration in the ecstatic process of modernity,and the Bentham's "original panopticon configuration" which comes from"greatest happiness principle" and aimed at achieving the greatest happiness of greatest number,have evolved into the "panopticism" which Foucault called as the foundation of a new political dissection technique and the physics of power,even turned into a "oppressive overall surveillance society" in the development process of modernity.Third,the ecstatic process of modernity shows itself as the evolution and alternation of the above three regimes of pleasure.During this course of historical process,the ethical regime of pleasure is the idea pump of the ecstatic process of modernity which fills with plenty of possibility seeds,the technical regime of pleasure is practice form of ecstatic process of modernity which renews and reform the epicurean doctrines by different ways,and the aesthetical regime of pleasure is the self-transcend of ecstatic process of modernity,not only transcend the technical regime of pleasure but also to explore its future Ex-istenz possibilities,such transcend and explore shows the trend of return to the structural characters of the ethical regime of pleasure.The main dimension of different regimes of pleasure changed during the ecstatic process of modernity:the basic pleasure form changes from ethical pleasure to sensory pleasure and aesthetic pleasure;the exciting point of pleasure evolutes from meditation to sensation and emotion;the pursue pleasure and avoid pain innate mechanism of will to pleasure alternates from pursue good and avoid evil to pursue interest to avoid harm then pursue interest and accept harm and so on.These changes not only demonstrate the basic rhythm of the ecstatic process of modernity,but also the result of the effect mechanism of this basic rhythm.Fourth,the basic rhythm of the ecstatic process of modernity is innate mechanism of the evolution and alternation of different regimes of pleasure.The mode of action of this innate mechanism is the basic configuration and results of the before regime of pleasure act on the opposite direction of the coming regime of pleasure.The pleasure is happiness doctrines which is belittled during the practice process of the ethical regime of pleasure has been renewed and reformed during the course of the technical regime of pleasure construed itself is vivid shows the mode of action.It is necessary to point out is that though we defined the different stages of the ecstatic process of modernity as different regime of pleasure,not means that in a specific regime of pleasure do not exist the elements and characters of the other regime of pleasure,but means that the key elements and characters in the particular stage of the historical process made it particular regime of pleasure.There is ethical pleasure and aesthetic pleasure in the technical regime of pleasure,but the main pleasure form of this regime is the sensory pleasure which is stimulated and satisfied by the commodity and service produced by industry and marketed by market.Finally,the dissertation investigated the relationship of will to pleasure and the ecstatic process of modernity with a historical sight,examined the origination and development of modernity with a genealogical perspective of regime of pleasure,and illustrated that pleasure always run through and deeply constructs the historical process of modernity.The project of modernity is not fulfill its the greatest happiness planning and commitments,and kinds of happiness propaganda and pleasure declaration,not disappeared but rather quite prevailing in today's society,to a large extent is because of the complicate interaction of capital interest,reason of state and will to pleasure.If there is any common foundation of Weber's interpretation of modernity from protestant asceticism and rationalism,Sombart from luxury and greed,and Campbell from romantic ethic and the Spirit of Consumerism,the will to pleasure(or its opposition)may be such common foundation.The ecstatic theory of modernity is such an attempt to understand and interpret ate modernity from the will to pleasure,the potential layers and possible connections which is await to discussion is the directions that we will explore next time.