Quantify This: Statistics, The State, and Governmentality

Abstract

This thesis seeks to examine the following question: what is the relationship between national statistics and governmental control? To explore this question, it will examine three historical case studies, all taking place in Western Europe in the 18th and 19th Centuries. These historical case studies will focus on the beginnings of censuses in Great Britain, Germany and France. They exhibit that the relationship between national statistics and state control is complex and non-linear, and that the absence of statistics is also a means through which very strong governmental power can be asserted. Overall, this paper advocates for a greater societal awareness of the complicated implications of national statistics.