Power
Represented
in
the
Systems
of
Communication:


A
Textual
Analysis
of
Power
by
Michel
Foucault





“No
doubt,
communicating
is
always
a
certain
way
of
acting
upon
another
person
or
persons.”


(Foucault,
337)




.




 In
the
work
Power
by
Michel
Foucault,
the
subject
of
communication
is
brought

up.
He
believes
that
relationships
of
communication
are
tied
to
our
capacities
or
abilities

and
power
relationships.
When
he
says
that
communication
is
an
action
upon
another,

he
means
this
in
terms
of
power
dynamics.
He
discusses
power
as
being
a
relationship

between
two
or
more
people
and
it
is
certainly
evident
that
communication
requires

the
same
level
of
partnership.
In
order
to
communicate
there
must
be
one
who
is
doing

the
communicating,
and
another
who
is
being
communicated
to.
The
one
expressing

their
ideas
is
inherently
the
one
who
possesses
the
power
in
such
a
dynamic.



 To
begin,
we
must
note
that
communication
requires
a
transmission
of

information
and/or
ideas
from
one
person
to
at
least
one
other.
This
transmission
of

thought
is
restricted
and
limited
by
the
representational
medium
of
an
individual’s

choice.
Whether
it
be
through
language,
signage,
image
or
any
combination
thereof,
the

expression
of
ideas
is
restricted
to
the
fundamental
limits
of
that
particular
medium.

One
can
only
convey
or
articulate
ideas
as
easily
as
the
other
is
able
to
understand
and

comprehend
them.



 Signs
and
language
are
human
creations
and
are
not
consistent
throughout

either
time
or
space.
The
limits
of
these
expressions
of
ideas
are
then
inflated
by
the

limitations
of
the
comprehension
of
the
giver
and
interpreter.
One
can
see
this
in
terms

of
language
translations
where
the
poeticism
of
one
language
is
often
not
transferable

into
another.
Though
the
words
are
converted
accurately,
the
intrinsic
meaning
and

feeling
of
a
word
in
one
language
may
not
be
adequately
exchanged
into
another
and

presents
an
entirely
different
idea.
In
language
this
is
even
more
evident
when
we
come

across
a
word
which
in
not
translatable
outside
of
its
original
language.
The
use
of
the

German
word
dasein
in
Heidegger’s
English
translations
is
a
perfect
example
of
this.
The

specific
definition
of
the
German
word
is
so
vast
and
distinct
that
there
is
no
single
word

in
the
English
language
that
can
adequately
substitute
it
while
still
encompassing
the

entirety
of
its
original
definition.
Images
are
substantially
more
subjective
than
language

is
and
it
is
easy
to
see
how
they
too
can
be
manipulated
in
order
to
produce
the
effect

that
one
desires.
Iconic
representations
can
symbolize
entirely
different
things
for

different
people
and
the
ability
to
transmit
an
idea
properly
requires
one
to
understand

how
the
other
interprets
the
visual.



 This
manipulation
of
thoughts
and
ideas
results
in
an
interesting
dynamic.
If
one

is
charged
with
the
task
of
informing
another
group
or
individual
of
something,
they

possess
the
ability
to
manipulate,
contort,
omit
or
fabricate
any
such
facts
or
thoughts

they
so
choose.
They
are
able
to
determine
which
parts
of
the
information
are
passed

on
and
in
what
format
and
light
that
that
information
is
presented.
A
perfect
example
of

this
can
be
seen
in
modern
culture
in
terms
of
news
presentation.
Bias
can
easily
be

detected
by
looking
at
the
medium
of
a
story’s
presentation
and
at
the
strategic

omissions
of
selected
parts
of
information.
In
this
way
one
can
see
how
the
one
in

charge
of
information
distribution
can
ultimately
determine
it’s
meaning
to
the

audience
that
it
is
projected
to.
By
enacting
their
power,
they
are
able
to
construct
how

information
is
communicated
and
understood.



 Communicative
relationships
are
linked
in
with
power
in
terms
of
the
ability
to

modify
and
change
the
arena
of
information.
When
one
possesses
the
ability
to
change

the
presentation
and
representation
of
ideas,
one
is
in
control
of
its
spread
and

importance.
The
power
relations
are
formed
in
terms
of
the
construction
and
trade
of

signage
and
ideas.



 Foucault
does
not
believe
that
there
is
an
ideal
or
perfected
field
of
things
and

ideas,
but
rather
that
all
things
are
interpreted
representations
and
thus
there
is
power

inherent
in
the
transmission
of
all
ideas.
Reliant
on
the
comprehension
of
both
the
giver

of
information
and
the
receiver,
ideas
can
never
be
completely
pure.
They
are

dependant
on
the
medium
in
which
they
are
projected
through
as
well
as
when,
where

and
through
whom.
The
malleability
of
ideas
allows
one
to
come
up
and
seize
the
power

inherent
in
them
and
change
them
to
suit
their
agendas.
For
Foucault,
language
and

information
are
highly
powerful
and
influential.



 If
one
is
able
to
present
and
manipulate
the
meaning
and
message
of
the

language
they
present,
they
are
able
to
direct
the
evolution
of
that
thought.
Through

this
one
can
direct
the
flow
of
information
and
how
it
presents
in
the
future.
The
power

of
communication
is
the
power
to
change
thoughts
and
ideas
and
by
extension,
how
the

other
thinks.
With
this,
one
has
the
power
to
change
and
formulate
thought.















Works
Cited

Foucault,
Michel.
Power:
Essential
Works
of
Foucault.
Trans.
R.
Hurley
et.
al.
Vol.
3.
New
York:
New
Press,

2001.
Print.