- Panopticon is a term used to describe an ideal [[prison]] structure devised by [[Jeremy Bentham.]], an 18th century English philosopher. The panopticon is a circular building with a watchtower in the center, around which the individual cells are arranged in a radial pattern. This structure allows the warden to watch the prisoners from the central tower, creating a situation where the prisoners do not know when they are being watched.
- Therefore, prisoners will always have a sense of being under surveillance, and will engage in self-regulation and self-surveillance. This concept is also related to contemporary [[surveillance society]] and [[privacy]] issues, and is an important concept in considering the nature of [[authority]] and [[surveillance]].
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