The power to not-see is constitutive of seeing itself

Evidence

In Bentham’s panopticon prison, however, the opposite is true: prisoners work dutifully as long as the inspector is not in view; in his presence, they stage, as it were, indiscipline, idleness and disorder. Thus, in the panopticon, the inspector exposes himself to the eyes of the prisoners as little as possible: all of his power over the prisoners derives from his invisibility, or more precisely, his ‘invisible omnipresence’. — Jeremy Bentham, The Panopticon Writings, 38 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The image is constituted by a nihilating structure, not by revived perception — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness: An Essay on…, 230; Nihilation is the permanent self-determination not to be the in-itself — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness: An Essay on…, 350; Being watched strips my own gaze of its objectifying power over others — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness: An Essay on…, 739 (+12 more)

Related

• Panoptic power derives from invisible omnipresence rather than real presence (similarity 0.87)
• Invisible presence requires real absence to seem omnipresent (similarity 0.84)
• Panoptic power rests on central inspection plus unseen watching (similarity 0.82)
• Unseen visitors leave prisoners without fear of exposure (similarity 0.82)
• Power functions automatically when subjects believe they are always visible (similarity 0.82)
• Apparent omnipresence of the inspector sustains discipline (similarity 0.82)
• Even imperfect invisibility can sustain the illusion of constant surveillance (similarity 0.81)
• The panoptic inspector must hide for fear his fictional divinity will be exposed (similarity 0.81)
• Invisible inspection can awe prisoners to silence without any physical restraint (similarity 0.81)
• The panopticon’s power rests on a fiction at its core (similarity 0.79)
• Each inspector is himself under inspection, losing his omnipresence at moments of visible action (similarity 0.79)
• The inspector’s invisibility is practically achievable despite incompatible ideal conditions (similarity 0.79)
• An opaque dummy object substitutes for the inspector in the lantern undetected (similarity 0.79)
• Constant visibility captures subjects better than darkness and enclosure ever did (similarity 0.79)
• Unlocatable individual addressing makes all prisoners assume they are watched (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Seeking invisibility differs fundamentally from having insignificance imposed #expands (0.80)
• Panoptic power derives from invisible omnipresence rather than real presence #expands (0.78) — Jeremy Bentham, The Panopticon Writings, 38
• Thought requires deliberate self-distancing because reality resists being understood directly #expands (0.72)