Gender and Society Finals:

Think a social, religious, economic, environmental, or a political issue and try to understand o expose their
structure or problem in relation to gender. Use Michel Focault’s Self-Fashioning as a kind of response to
your cited or mentioned issue. This paper is limited to 500 words. Cite source if you will use any internet
source.

Answer:

Duterte signing the anti-terror law last year, was one of the most disturbing issue(s) here in the Philippines. This
law’s introduction is the latest example of the country’s ever-worsening human rights record. Under Duterte’s
presidency, even the mildest government critics can be labelled terrorists. The Duterte government’s track record
regarding human rights and democracy is undoubtedly disturbing. It has run roughshod over human rights, its
political opponents, and the country’s democratic institutions. The combination of the Philippines’ powerful presidency
and the resilience of most of its political institutions is resulting in significant democratic backsliding.

The nature of political control what we will define as power and authority is an important part of society. As Michel
Foucault described it, government is the “conduct of conduct,” the way some seek to act upon the conduct of others
to change or channel that conduct in a certain direction. (Foucault 1982, pp. 220-221)

Government implies that there are relations of power between rulers and ruled, but the context of rule is not limited to
the state. Government in this sense is in operation whether the power relationship is between states and citizens,
institutions and clients, parents and children, doctors and  patients, employers and employees, masters and dogs, or
even oneself and oneself. Think of the training regimes, studying routines, or diets people put themselves through as
they seek to change or direct their lives in a particular way. The role of the state and its influence on society and vice
versa is just one aspect of governmental relationships.

Foucault is one of the few writers on power who recognize that power is not just a negative, coercive or repressive
thing that forces us to do things against our wishes, but can also be a necessary, productive and positive force in
society. (Gaventa 2003)