The panoptic model and the control of space: the case of San Luis Gonzaga School, Cartago - Costa Rica

Abstract

The panopticon was created to control individuals and its implementation is not arbitrary. The researcher discovers within this architectural model how the morphology of the buildings determines the control of the social space. It is designed for the strict surveillance of the individuals that interact in it. This article discusses how this architectural model favors the implementation of an ideology and specifically “a technology of power” in the words of Foucault (1979). First, the theoretical foundations of the panopticon are established as proposed by Bentham, and then its implementation and application is analyzed to the specific case of the San Luis Gonzaga School in the province of Cartago – Costa Rica.