«Liberalism and Danger in Michel Foucault’s Naissance de la Biopolitique (Lesson of January 24, 1979)» : Further remarks

«Liberalism is engaged into a mechanism where it will have, at every moment, to arbitrate the liberty and security of individuals around this notion of danger». This phrase/sentence, drawn from Michel Foucault’s lesson of January 24, 1979 (Naissance de la Biopolitique,p. 67), is of great importance, since it makes clear, for the first time in the philosopher’s work, the link between the concept of liberalism on the one hand and that of security and liberty on the other, using as an intermediary the notion of danger.

In this way, the notion (or, better, concept) of danger acquires a crucial significance in Foucault’s thought, as it has already been shown, although no other reference is made to it in the next lessons in the Course at the College of France in 1978-9 under the general title «Naissance de la Biopolitique». This is perhaps explained if someone notices the logic through which Foucault constructs his Course: in the first lessons he develops his basic theoretical tools and concepts, i.e. his own understanding of the fundamental concepts of liberalism, utilitarianism, political economy, liberty-security, danger and so on, and afterwards he implements them, on a selective basis, on such specific cases as German ordoliberalism, American neoliberalism and the model of homo oeconomicus.

It is regrettable, then, that Foucault does not elaborate further on the crucial reference to «vivre dangereusement» in the lessons that follow. However, to better understand -at least at a preliminary level, though further research is needed- the link/connection between liberalism and liberty/security through danger, the following remarks have to be made.

Foucault’s liberalism is another word for naturalism and although the term naturalism is more appropriate, Foucault prefers to use liberalism because it shows more clearly the connection and the importance of the concept of liberty, the basic concept of the 18th century (ibid., p.63, p.65). Liberalism is the liberal mode of governing and the place where it is implemented is that of the market which is a place of justice through the price mechanism (natural price, good price, normal price) (ibid., p. 32).

The limitsof liberalism are derived from the concept of utilitarianism and not from the law. Utilitarianism is a governmental technology which comes from the notion of political economy and the transformation of power in the 18th century (bio-pouvoir).

Utilitarianism as the limit of liberalism is further analyzed into three different concepts: a) the management of dangers and the foundation/implementation of security mechanisms, b) the disciplinary control and c) the interventionist policies. From the above three limits of liberalism, the first is related with the present analysis and indicates that the concept of danger and the mechanisms of security are used as boundaries and restrictions of liberalism.

To be more precise, the three concepts mentioned above, should by no means be understood as being extraneous to liberalism -not as a theory or ideology, but -as a type of rationality involved in the mode of governing/the exercise of government,(ibid., p.22-23). On the contrary, they should be regarded as fundamentally inherent in the liberal art of governing/l’ art liberal de gouverner, as being the other side of the same coin. Indeed, as far as security and liberty are concerned, Senellart (ibid., «Situation du cours», p.335) speaks of a «double exigence», that constitutes the paradox of liberalism. Further, it is exactly the concept of danger that arbitrates/orientates the game security/liberty in such a way that individuals and the collectivity/population will be exposed to the less possible danger in the framework of this new rationality of governing («le moins possible exposés aux dangers», ibid., p.67). Thus, the concept of danger explains and implements the theoretical game liberty/security.

In the same perspective, the issue of exceptionalism which highlights much of ELISE and CHALLENGE research can be seen from a different angle. The fact that no explicit mention of exceptionalism as a concept is made in Naissance de la Biopolitique, either in the above-mentioned or in other passages, is illuminating. To use Andrew Neal’s own words, whatever complementarity could be argued to exist between Foucault and Schmitt, the latter being characteristic for the theory of exceptionalism, «at the most obvious level, Foucault’s approach is the exact opposite of Schmitt’s» (Andrew, N., Foucault in Guantanamo: National, Sovereign, Disciplinary Exceptionalism, http://www.libertysecurity.org/article199.html).

For this reason, the lesson of February 21, 1979, should be mentioned as providing some confirmation of the above. Foucault makes reference to the État de droit (Rule of law, Rechtsstaat) as a concept which appeared in political theory and German jurisprudence, at the end of the 18th –beginning of the 19th century. Without analyzing all the strands of his analysis, suffice it to say that the Rule of law is defined in contradistinction with despotism and Polizeistaat. It is only in the Rule of law that the distinction can be made, and sustained, between legal dispositions of a general and abstract nature («Laws») on the one hand and administrative measures on the other. These two categories are to be clearly separated; the analysis then extends to the problem of administrative tribunals (see, for all the above, Foucault, M., ibid., pp.173 et seq.) but the argument could be made that the discretionary power of the State is not seen by Foucault as being analytically distinct from the overall framework of Liberalism as the liberal art of governing. Laws and administrative measures are clearly separated in their origin, nature and effects under the Rule of law characteristic of Liberalism. Indeed, it could perhaps be said that, in line with the above, the «discretionary power of the Sovereign’ is fundamentally integrated in the arbitration between Liberty/Security through the concept of danger. For this reason, exceptionalism should not be granted a special analytical status but rather examined under the framework of liberal governmentality.

See also : «Liberalism and Danger in Michel Foucault’s Naissance de la Biopolitique (Lesson of January 24, 1979)»