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The Panopticon in My Life Essay

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Panopticon The Panopticon in My Life

Principles of the Panopticon can appear just about everywhere in our everyday life. The Panopticon itself is a simple system of centralized visualization. The basis of the original Panopticon was a circular prison system with a tower sitting in the middle that had a full, unobstructed view of all the prison cells. I can apply this idea to many situations in my life varying from computer use to my college classrooms. An instance, which stands out the most in my mind as being a panoptic environment, is my experiences in gaming casinos.

The basic system of just about every casino is that of the tables (including Roulette, Blackjack and Craps) filling the center of the room with computerized …show more content…

The difference here is the layout is meant for the casino management to have full view of the players at the tables. Roulette, Blackjack and Craps tables are placed in a circular pattern with an area in the middle roped off for the casino personnel only. Within this area called the pit, stand the pit bosses. Their prime job is to keep an eye on all the tables and regulate them. As a player you barely notice there invading eyes because you are distracted by your game. They make sure there is no foul play on your end such as making sure you pay the right amount for chips, play correctly, and act in a civil manner. They not only keep a close eye on you but they make sure the dealer gives you correct payouts, makes correct change and that the cards, dice or wheel is played properly.

Another small panoptic system is the actual tables themselves. Each table, no matter which game, is arranged in a central way that the dealer is in the middle and the players surround him. All the players focus on the dealer and are reliant on his every move. The dealer, representing the house, has the ultimate control of the situation. Although he does not know the outcome, the chances of you losing are always higher. This gives the casino their edge. You completely depend on their outcome even though you do have a decision in how you play.

Lastly, the use of surveillance cameras is a prime panoptic example. Surveillance has to be the most prominent use of a

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