Michel Foucault

Power structures, postmodernism

Contemporary influential 151 sayings

Sayings by Michel Foucault

I am not interested in the truth, but in the history of truth.

Unknown — Often attributed, a core methodological statement.
Humorous Unverifiable

The greatest danger for me is to be bored.

Unknown — Often attributed, a personal confession.
Humorous Unverifiable

The role of the intellectual is not to tell others what to do, but to provide tools for analysis.

Unknown — Often attributed, a statement on intellectual responsibility.
Humorous Unverifiable

I am a happy positivist.

Unknown — Often attributed, a surprising self-description given his critical stance.
Humorous Unverifiable

The desire for knowledge is a form of power.

Unknown — Often attributed, connecting epistemology and power.
Humorous Unverifiable

My books are not meant to be read in a linear fashion.

Unknown — Often attributed, reflecting the challenging nature of his writing.
Humorous Unverifiable

I'm not a philosopher, I'm an experimenter.

1969 — Interview, 'What is an Author?'
Humorous Unverifiable

One day, perhaps, one will be able to detach the power of the gaze from the power of the state.

Unknown — Often attributed, a hopeful but perhaps ironic statement.
Humorous Unverifiable

The history of thought is the history of systems of thought.

Unknown — Often attributed, a methodological insight.
Humorous Unverifiable

I write to understand, not to be understood.

Unknown — Often attributed, a statement on his writing process.
Humorous Unverifiable

The human body is the site of power.

Unknown — Often attributed, a core theme in Discipline and Punish.
Humorous Unverifiable

I am not interested in liberation, but in practices of freedom.

Unknown — Often attributed, distinguishing his approach from traditional liberation movements.
Humorous Unverifiable

The institution of the family is a micro-power.

Unknown — Often attributed, extending his analysis of power beyond formal institutions.
Humorous Unverifiable

I am not a guru, I am a questioner.

Unknown — Often attributed, a humble self-description.
Humorous Unverifiable

The greatest enemy of truth is not lies, but the illusion of truth.

Unknown — Often attributed, a profound epistemological statement.
Humorous Unverifiable

I have always been interested in what happens at the margins.

Unknown — Often attributed, reflecting his focus on marginalized groups and discourses.
Humorous Unverifiable

The self is not a substance, but a form.

Unknown — Often attributed, a post-structuralist understanding of identity.
Humorous Unverifiable

I am a specialist in nothing.

Unknown — Often attributed, a humble and interdisciplinary self-assessment.
Humorous Unverifiable

To be modern is to find ourselves in an environment that promises us adventure, power, joy, growth, transformation of ourselves and the world – and, at the same time, that threatens to destroy everything we have, everything we know, everything we are.

Unknown — Often attributed, a complex view of modernity.
Humorous Unverifiable

The problem is not to discover what we are, but to refuse what we are.

Unknown — Often attributed, a call for critical self-reflection and transformation.
Humorous Unverifiable