What is a panopticon?

Question

What is a panopticon?

Answer 1

A panopticon is basically a prison or assylum in which the prison cells are built in semi-circle or full circle, facing inwards towards a central guard tower.  That way the guards have a full view of all the cells from this central point and would not have to walk up and down any corridors, etc.  The panoticon was actually desinged by an ecentric, English philosopher caller Jerermy Bentham in the Eighteenth Century.  A number of modern prisons still employ the design.  You can see a photograph of one at

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Presi...

Answer 2

The Panopticon is a type of prison building designed by English philosopher Jeremy Bentham in 1785

Answer 3

The first panopticon was a lunatic asylum. It was built in a circle so that inmates could not know when guards were observing them.

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