Spelfrossa : Spelets makt och maktens spel

Sammanfattning: In Sweden, there has been a major change in the role of gambling during the 20th century. Gambling used to be morally and ethically unjustifiable and something to be fought, whereas gambling today is seen as a normal activity, not only accepted by the society, but in some situations something to be en-couraged. The attitude towards gambling is that it stimulates, motivates, encourages creativity, and also brings pleasure and excitement. It generates national incomes, supports organizational activities and has become an im-portant factor in the Swedish regional planning. Today our values concern-ing gambling are governed by the possible immorality that can arise around it, such as risk with illegal activity coupled to gambling and the increasing debate around problem gambling. The ‘normalisation’ of gambling creates new boundaries for what is to be seen as, and what is an acceptable level, of gambling. As a consequence each individual has been given the responsibil-ity to respect this level. New boundaries create series of conflicts associated to what is normal and what is not, and our society has to find an acceptable balance. We have to respect the individual, our individuality, our right to spend our money and leisure time in a way that suits us. On the other hand, the society has a responsibility towards its citizens to make sure gambling will have no negative social consequences.This dissertation studies Swedish parliament documentation on gambling applying Michel Foucault’s method of genealogy. Starting from his theory of power a description of the development of the Swedish debate on gambling is given. It thereby sheds light on the game of truth within a discourse as well as the disciplinary impact discourses have on society.