Foucault used historical scholarship to illuminate the present diagonally.

Evidence

The courses also performed a role in contemporary reality. Those who followed his courses were not only held in thrall by the narrative that unfolded week. by week. and seduced by the rigorous exposition, they also found a perspective on contemporary reality. Michel Foucault’s art consisted in using history to cut diagonally through contemporary reality. He could speak ofNietzsche or Aristotle, ofexpert psychiatric opinion or the Ehristian pastoral; but thosewho attended his lectures always took from what he said a perspective on the present and .contemporary events. Foucault’s specific strength in his courses was the subtle interplay between learned erudition, personal commitment, and work on the event. — Michel Foucault, The Birth of Biopolitics, 95

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Foucault writes the history of the present through the prison — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 80

Broader Connections

• Foucault writes the history of the present through the prison #exemplifies (0.90) — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 80