Power. Vol. 3 of The Essential Works of Foucault, 1954-1984 (review)

Foucault, Michel. Power. Volume 3 of Essential Works of Foucault: 1954 – 1984. Ed. James D. Faubion. Trans. Robert Hurley et al. New York: The New Press, 2000. Pp. 484.

There is no need to be coy or cautious when reviewing this important collection of lectures, prefaces, interviews, and position papers by the French philosopher-historian Michel Foucault. On the contrary, it is all too easy to repeat that every good library ought to obtain it. Although most of these papers have appeared elsewhere, there are good reasons to welcome the publication of this three-volume collection, not least of which is that some of these documents are made available here in English for the first time. [End Page 143] Other reasons to welcome this latest segment of the Essential Works of Foucault are the convenient thematic groupings and indexes, revised translations, and the introductions to each volume, which provide a map of the contents. Finally, even for the material that is available elsewhere, one would have to search far and wide to find so many of Foucault’s commentaries gathered in a single publication. Future Foucault scholarship will be more efficient and informed as a result of the editorial work that brought these writings together.