How Can Power Be Exerted As The Epitome Of Surveillance?

Stephen acted as the epitome of surveillance when he grows suspicious of Django and Broomhilda during the dinner scene. As Foucault states, “Bentham laid down the principle that power should be visible and unverifiable,” (Foucault 231). The way in which power can be exerted is by creating a ‘dissymmetry’ between the observer and the observed. This means that the individual will always be able to identify the physical manifestation from which they are monitored from, but never know the exact moment of when they are being scrutinized. In order to construct an observation hall in which the overseer’s presence is unverifiable, Bentham designed partitions on the inside that divided the hall at right angles. He devised zig-zag openings instead of
As soon as Stephen noticed suspicious behavior between the two, he follows Broomhilda back to the kitchen to question her if she knows Django. She denies any affiliation with Django, but Stephen continues to taunt her. When back at the dinner table, Stephen suggests to Candie “the doctor here might be interested in seein’ Hildi’s peeled back, seein’ as how they don’t have many niggers where he come from.” All the while, Stephen observes to see how Django reacts, and Django watches Broomhilda with
This confirmed Stephens’s suspicion that they in fact knew each other. Later, Stephen notifies Candie that Django and Dr. King Schultz are interested in purchasing Broomhilda, rather than a Mandingo as they had initially stated. In this scene, Stephen acted as the surveillance on Candies behalf, watching out for him. Stephen was able to oversee the actions between Django and Broomhilda, and caught on quickly to what was truly going on. Django and Broomhilda were not aware of when they were being watched, but they did know that it was certain that their actions could be under analysis. When Stephen provoked a reaction from Broomhilda, the fear awakened her and was visible on her face. The breakdown of a controlled attitude gave Stephen the authority to warn Candie of wrongdoing in his house. During the course of extended conflict between Stephen, Django, and Broomhilda, the feelings of terror in Django and Broomhilda shaped Stephens perception. Stephen came to view Django and Broomhilda as an immoral enemy, escalating the conflict and making it effortless to dehumanize