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Books Quote by Michel Foucault

“Aren't you sure of what you're saying? Are you going to change yet again, shift your position according to the questions that are put to you, and say that the objections are not really directed at the place from which you are speaking? Are you going to declare yet again that you have never been…” quote by Michel Foucault
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““Aren't you sure of what you're saying? Are you going to change yet again, shift your position according to the questions that are put to you, and say that the objections are not really directed at the place from which you are speaking? Are you going to declare yet again that you have never been what you have been reproached with being? Are you already preparing the way out that will enable you in your next book to spring up somewhere else and declare as you're now doing: no, no, I'm not where you are lying in wait for me, but over here, laughing at you?' 'What, do you imagine that I would take so much trouble and so much pleasure in writing, do you think that I would keep so persistently to my task, if I were not preparing – with a rather shaky hand – a labyrinth into which I can venture, into which I can move my discourse, opening up underground passages, forcing it to go far from itself, finding overhangs that reduce and deform its itinerary, in which I can lose myself and appear at last to eyes that I will never have to meet again. I am no doubt not the only one who writes in order to have no face. Do not ask who I am and do not ask me to remain the same: leave it to our bureaucrats and our police to see that our papers are in order. At least spare us their morality when we write.””

Michel Foucault

About This Quote

Source Interview: 1975, French television, Michel Foucault discussing his writing practice

Foucault describes writing as a strategic, self‑obfuscating act that resists fixed identity and authority, using complex, shifting discourse to evade direct accountability and to critique institutional power.

In simple terms: He writes to hide his identity and challenge power structures.

Key Takeaway

Embrace ambiguity to critique authority.

Themes

identity power writing identity resistance

Mood

critical defiant introspective

Type

philosophical political literary

When to use this quote

  • academic publishing
  • political activism
  • literary experimentation
  • media interviews

Key Concepts

post‑structuralism self‑obfuscation discursive strategy

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does anonymity affect credibility?
  • Can complex discourse still mobilize change?
A Different Perspective

His dense, paradoxical style may alienate readers and obscure practical impact.

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