Geometric turn

From Geography

When we speak of the geometric turn, we mean the geometric turn in histories of power into histories of social otherness. Thus the geometric turn means a change in history. It moved from ‘power’ to ‘social otherness’. Chris Philo defines the geometric turn as ‘the desire to impose simple spatial categories and indeed dualistic oppositions on the historical materials’. A glance at Michel Foucault's historical inquiry, reveals his alertness to space, more precise, the way in which spatial relations are always deeply implicated in the historical processes under study (Philo, 2000).

The main develloper of the geometric turn is Michel Foucault. Even a casual glance at Foucault's substantive historical inquiries reveals a finely alertness to spass, or to be more precise, to the way in which spatial relations are always deeply implicated in the historical processes under study (Philo, 1992, p.221). He discribes this turn in his work: Madness of civilization (1967). Foucault studied the geometries of power that have structured the historical experiences of human populations. Foucault demonstrates through empirical detail the role played by spatail relations in the complex workings of dicourse, knowledge and power, and he speculates that the history of powers would at one and the same time amount to a history written of spaces (Philo, 1992, p. 222). He did research through projecting a simple geometry of inclusion and exclusion of inside and outside on the history of Western madness. The social world is spatially shaped by certain groups which own the important channels of power. These channels can impose dualistic oppositions within the several types of power (Peet, 1998, p. 231). Foucaults sensitivity to spatial relations, results in the introduction of a geometric turn. This geometric turn went from power into histories of social otherness (Philo, 2000).

References

Peet, R. (1998). Modern geographical thought. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

Philo, C. (1992). Foucault's geography. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space 10(2) 137 – 161

Philo, C. (2000). Foucault's geography.

Contributors

• page created by Susan Verbeij --SusanVerbeij and --BoudewijnIdema 12:32, 14 September 2011 (UTC)

• Edited by Frank Simons

Enhanched by Renate van Haaren, --RenateVanHaaren 11:40, 26 October 2012 (CEST)

Edited by Pieter van Luijk 26 October 2012