Foucault draws a distinction between political and personal parrhesia. In noting the different styles of parrhesia evident in Euripides Ion, Foucault states that personal parrhesia “takes the form of a truthful accusation against another more powerful [individual], and as a confession of the truth about herself (p. 56).
It is this form of parrhesia I contend is displayed on dooce where Armstrong not only critiques the behaviour of some of her co-workers but also levels a critique of herself: “I hate the way I can’t agree to do anything.” It’s not overtly political. By her own admission her posts offers criticism without any real attempt to make a change: “since I lump myself in with all the other miserable corporate wankers who honest-to-God think they cause no pain in the workplace, I get to complain about the whole thing without offering any sort of valuable feedback.” However, the act of making these criticisms public through her blog turns her otherwise innocent musings into parrhesia that tested out the limits of the existing parrhesiastic contracts within her work place.
Foucault, M. (2001). Parrhesia in Euripides. In J. Pearson (Ed.), Fearless Speech. Los Angeles: Semiotext(e).
