bvid Rrter:

TIE utEonscious

in Cdtqporarv Grlttre in

EXAMINATIONS to
An

Intro&ELidl

Corttdlpraiv Cdtrn'a1 Strdies

15

The intcr.ogali()n, thc niSht txxn al lhe door, thc moustachcd colonel llankcd by axeculioncts, hav been outlawdd in the Brilish ideology: in placc of th intertogation, wc havc claminations. The csscntial fe atures of lhis Process are uniformily and dislind ion: a laboraktry equalizalion ot baakgto!nd against which minule dis.ri' mination c;n,-we are told, stand out clcarly. Thus thc procss ol dillcrcntiation is ilsclf dual: on the one hand, lhere is lhe diffcrcnlia' rx)n anxrnscandirtrlcs, r)n thc olher thccontinuouspractice ol mlnulc dircrimrniion as a validalion of lhc unfailing rkills ol lhc ctamincrs
What lhc candidatc cannotse'.: is lhc proccsswhich takes place hchind rhe mirror: rhe way io which lhc arlificially calned battlcficld of llrc xaminalion room has superimPsd on to it lhc image of thc war' room ilself, wher, under lhe guise ol a more or less carinB and accurale version of assessment ofachicvement, minulely vatious inltl' lccrual and Flilical posilioos arc slaled oul and evidcnced. and lhc

cramincrs ;omc lo dircct qrips with lhe conlrol panels of etcicly. dealins in Dcrccnlaees. classificalions, specifrc balancesotexccllcncel and ali lhis uniqucly salely, for in lhe examinalian Proccss lherB is rypicrlly no onc:to.onc encountcr across thu all-imporlnnt boundrry. and oo recourse ofappeal from judgement Mcrnwhile, oul in lhe examinstion room, lhe other necessary miractc occurs, and the organizing aulhorily thus repealedly demon' srrrlcs lhe power of its begemony: thre is, again' no revol! The hundrcds oacandidatcs do nol - again - expcrience their colleclivityi thev rrc. arain. anJ al lhe drop of a piece of chalk' $paralcd, an);izrd, r;(luccJ down ro s.paralc paniclcs, and bow lhert heads bckxc rhe punre\l represcnlalivc o{ lhol aulhorily, alhcil hcgowned or

swordlrictcd. Ag.in lhc frisson ocftrs whcnevcr lhe lone candid.tc dares kr raise a hand: will lhis te the signal, or th ioilialion of a lranurc\skrn? Bul no, whalever lhe requst was. il iniliales onlv lhe condicl of an almost silnl discours: lhe inviSilalor bends caringly
over his individual charge, having laken his own limc lo anend,
and

lhus mndc nnd provcd his own judgcnlenl of urgeflcy. Theraficr lhc culFrir brokcn: n,, p(lssibihry lhcrc of chrngc. and wirh cach carc'5 intirlcnr, h.'wcvcr lrivirl. rh. suhjugrri(,n of thc masts tuliv hrnLllcLl i\ m,)rc strongly rcrnlor.cd. ln lhe cnd. thc dncd_up rcsiJ're of rch!lli.,n is r,(rinllcs\ly .narlcd. in rhe .'arly lcavA: bul lhrs only mnfirns rhe ovcrall messagc.lhal only in *,me enlirtly olhcr place, bcyond lhe enclosing walls of this room, is lhetc an .vailable imag of freedom, but at fnr loo high a price for $e maiorily. 'l'hus also a mylh of finality is inculcaled and foslcrcd: lhal, somc_ where at the cnd of lhe learning proacss (for lhc assumption is thrt thre must be such an end), lhcr will be an accurate and reliable reckoninS, ln the meantime, raw exPtrioncc is dcvalued: il is lo lE treated as preparalion and revision, the early ltages ofa protss which leolo8y. Dealh ilsclt is at stake in lhc stands undcr lhe sign of t errminalion room: on thc pass lisls, lhcre will always be ai lersl one name which does not appear al all, *hich has vanished off lhe cnd of lhe spectrum of lhe accdptablc, lo sland as lhc siSn tor a slill prcs.nl falc, as rhe evidcnce of lhc powcr ot lifc lnd dealh. Thc exam'nets do not ned (o don the black capi we don itourslves as ive panicipate in rhe proccss. as*e submir lo lhc procedurcswhich will include in lheir end resuh lhe silenr eiclusion of one of our number. and which will lhus validale ourclaim lo turthcr life.