Those voluntarily entering the pauper-Panopticon, were given room and board, as well as a small stipend, in exchange for their labors. It was intended to house not only individuals but also entire families. In fact, the whole scheme depended on a large supply of children and, hence, child labor (see Figure 22).
![Figure 27 Illustration of workhouse children in England, ca. 1812.](http://www.boomsalad.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Figure27Illustration-300x245.jpg)
For the pauper-Panopticon to be economically feasible, it would need to satisfy a number of important requirements. For instance, it had to be big, big enough to maintain a safe and healthy environment for, “massive numbers of people.” In addition, there would have to be a lot of them. “Bentham’s initial designs were meant to ‘accommodate nationally a maximum of 500,000 persons’.”
It would also need to be profitable financially, and eventually, self-sustaining. The efficient use and supervision of labor, including that of the children and the elderly, and the scrupulous management of costs, would eventually lead to a net profit. The numerous benefits that society would receive from the pauper-Panopticons erected throughout England and Wales would be immense. These included a “[guarantee] against any increases in…[taxes from the Poor Laws]”. And over time, as the “industry houses” became profitable, taxes for poor relief would eventually begin to decrease.
In addition, all residents would learn a trade that would eventually empower them to enter the workforce and become self-sustaining. Thus, the pauper-Panopticon or “industry house” would become, in effect, an employment engine for society: turning idleness and indigence into a profitable workforce.
Bentham’s final panoptic design[1], the “chrestomathic-Panopticon,” was in many ways a return to his brother’s original scheme. According to Brunon-Ernst, it was intended as a, “day-school where one inspecting master could supervise more than 600 pupils” (23, see Figure 23). Like Samuel’s workhouse model, its panoptic discipline functioned both as a protection for its wards against mistreatment from others, and to ensure responsive and efficient training and instruction.
![Figure 28 St. Petersberg School of Arts. A chrestomathic-Panopticon built under the supervision of Jeremy Bentham, 1810.](http://www.boomsalad.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Figure28StPetersberg-230x300.jpg)
“This is all very interesting, but what does it have to do with Battlefield 4 and ‘video gaming in the 21st century?’”
My sentiments exactly, “what does Bentham’s Panopticon have to do with Battlefield 4 and video gaming in the 21st century?” (see Figure 24)
![Figure 29 Batllefield 4: Operation Locker: the Panopticon is in the middle of the map.](http://www.boomsalad.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Figure29Batllefield4OpLock-300x300.jpg)
The short answer is: everything. As the rest of this essay will demonstrate, the disciplinary and technological structure of Battlefield 4, as an online multiplayer environment, uses a “panoptic paradigm” to manage its players and keep them playing. Their implementation is simultaneously the most comprehensive fulfillment of all and none of Bentham’s ‘Panoptical’ iterations ever achieved.