ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that surveillance is historically ubiquitous. Using some of the grand themes of surveillance discourse as anchors, it also argues that traces of these themes can be found, in differing forms, throughout the human history. An early example of state surveillance includes the lists of all adult males fit for military service maintained during the Roman Republic, similar to a modern census or military register. State surveillance throughout modern history has been precipitated by the dual factors of warfare and welfare to protect citizens against threats while also ensuring their health and welfare – the classic “social contract” espoused by moral and political philosophers. Fear can lead to potential prejudice, as scholars have discussed in terms of the Muslim community and police surveillance in a post-9/11 world. As David Garland has argued with reference to the post-1970s period, any such social surveillance takes place within a much broader cultural context.
