Philosophy 630, Fall 2005 Professor Joan Callahan
Tuesday, 4-6:30, Breckinridge 107 Office: 112 Breckinridge
SYLLABUS FOR SEMINAR IN VALUE THEORY:
FEMINIST MORAL PHILOSOPHY
GENERAL INFORMATION
NB: ONE OF OUR AUTHORS, PROFESSOR NAOMI ZACK, WILL BE HERE TO SPEAK ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2005 AT 4 PM. YOUR PRESENCE AT THIS TALK IS REQUIRED FOR THIS COURSE. PROFESSOR ZACK WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE TO HAVE DINNER WITH THE SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5. PLEASE DO ALL THAT YOU CAN TO BE AVAILABLE FOR THIS DINNER.
(1) Office Hours: Tuesday 1-4 pm; and by appointment, BRECKINRIDGE 112
(2) Phones: 257‑1388 (Women’s Studies Office); 293-1841 (Home Office) .
(3) Email: my email address is: <buddy@uky.edu>.
(4) WWW: The syllabus for this course can be found on the WWW at http://www.uky.edu/~buddy/630fem.html
(5) General Expectations: It is expected that you will have done the reading assigned for a given class before coming to class on that day. What is raised in class will ALWAYS presuppose that you have done the reading with care. You can expect to be called on to help with exposition of the readings, to offer your views on the topics, and so on. The central aims of the seminar are to (1) help us all deepen our understanding of the contributions of feminism to moral philosophy and (2) help us do our own thinking on the issues raised and points made by feminist moral theorists. Thus, my hope is that the classes will involve a considerable amount of discussion of your philosophical responses (positive and negative) to the assigned readings and the problems they address. If such discussion is to be of value to us, your consistent, careful, and timely preparation of the readings is absolutely crucial.
(6) A Sketch of What Will Occupy Us: Since feminist moral philosophy overlaps the boundaries of traditional domains of inquiry, and since most (if not all) of feminist theory is to be construed as radical critique of (or, minimally, as radical departure from) existing theory, we shall need to remind ourselves of some of the work in the received canon of Western moral philosophy, including work in ethical theory, social and political theory, jurisprudence, and practical ethics, which will comprise the major areas of focus in the seminar. Thus, along the way we'll be reminding ourselves of some of the work of influential Western theorists. We'll be interested, too, in seeing what features characteristically feminist theories or perspectives share, and where the major disagreements between and among feminists arise. And we'll be interested in feminist critiques of feminism that come from the margins; that is, we'll proceed with an eye to how much of feminist theory has been criticized by feminists for being reflective of white, western, middle-class, relatively young, heterosexual women's lives.
(7) Background Assumptions: Much of the work we'll be looking at will assume at least some familiarity with standard works in Western moral and political philosophy. You should review these works. In most cases, there should be several copies of them available in the library, and most of the more historical pieces are available for just a few dollars through Hackett publishers. Among the main works we will most need to be aware of are: Plato, The Republic; Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics and Politics; J.J. Rousseau, The Social Compact; Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, First and Second Parts; John Locke, Second Treatise of Civil Government; Immanuel Kant, Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, Preface, Parts I & II; John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism and On Liberty; Karl Marx, Capital, Volume I; Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, The German Ideology; Frederick Engels, The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State; John Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Part I; and Robert Nozick, Anarchy,State, and Utopia, Parts I & II. You should also be familiar with Carol Gilligan's In a Different Voice.(8) Requirements:
(a) Presentations with Handouts:
You are expected to do several seminar presentations, on material assigned for class. In each case, please prepare detailed, helpful handouts for the seminar participants.
(1) Presentations on assigned readings: Since the assigned reading for each day will cover more than what can be fully discussed in class, you will need to be selective in preparing your presentations. That is, you will usually need to select some issue/question/argument in the assigned reading on which to focus. After the first class, each class will include two or three presentations. All presentations should cover the following tasks:
(a) an overview of the piece(s) to be discussed, including summary of the major conclusions of the piece;
(b) an articulation of the presenter's view on what is most helpful / illuminating in the piece;
(c) a clear explanation of what you're taking as your focus in your presentation and your reason(s) for this focus;
(d) an articulation of the presenter's view on the strongest objection that might be brought against the piece;
(e) finish with a suggested focus for discussion;
(f) prepare a handout for distribution.
Everyone, of course, is expected to read all of the assigned material prior to class and to come to class prepared to help with the exposition and criticism of the material. You are encouraged to use a discussion‑style format where seminar members are called upon to help with the exposition and criticism of the material to be discussed. Presenters should assume they can call on anyone in the class to help with exposition.
(b) Written work (90 %):
(1) You are expected to keep a reading journal, in which you will write on the assigned material. Your journals will be collected at the penultimate class and returned to you on the last day of class. Part of your journal entry for each of the assigned readings should be a question on the reading to help with the class discussion of the reading. These questions, along with your presentations, will importantly direct our discussions of the assigned readings. (20%)
(2) The handouts you prepare to accompany your class presentations will be considered part of your written work. (20%)
(3) At midterm, you will be assigned to write a 5-7 page paper on a topic from a list of topics generated in group discussion. This essay for midterm should be prepared as a thorough, formal paper. (20%)
(4) A term paper (ABSOLUTELY no more than 15 double-spaced, typewritten pages) will be due on the last day of class. Ideally, this paper will be developed in three stages: (1) generation of topic and bibliography; (2) development of detailed outline/draft; and (3) final draft. (30%)
On papers: Papers for this course might focus on (a) some aspect of the work of a feminist working in any of the areas we are touching on in the seminar (i.e., ethical theory, political theory, jurisprudence, practical ethics) or some combination of these; (b) a problem / issue area, combining treatment of the work of several authors; (c) a piece of work done by one of the assigned authors that you find especially illuminating or troublesome. Finally, (d) a paper might be prepared as a review of two books we are not reading, but which have appeared in the last year. In other words, there are various ways these papers can be done. What will be important is that your papers be critical as well as expository and that they be highly polished, and suitable for submission to be presented at a professional conference or to a professional journal. More will be said on this in class.
(c) Well-prepared presence in class (10%)
(9) Grading: I am always ambivalent about grading, but the institution requires that we do it and that it be meaningful. This is how I interpret letter grades:
A = genuinely outstanding work C = unsatisfactory as graduate level work
B = good work for this level D or E = profoundly unsatisfactory work
As indicated above, your final grade will be based on your informed class participation and your written work. I trust that it goes without saying that repeated absences and/or repeated lack of preparation for class will have a negative impact on your grade.
******************************************************************************
REQUIRED TEXTS
[AKS] Barbara S. Andrew, Jean Keller, and Lisa H. Schwartzman, eds., Feminist Interventions in Ethics and Politics (Rowman and Littlefield, 2005).
[CR] Joan C. Callahan and Dorothy E. Roberts, "A Feminist Social Justice Approach to Reproduction‑Assisting Technologies: a Case Study on the Limits of Liberal Theory," Kentucky Law Journal, Volume 84, Number 4, 1995‑96, pp. 1197‑1234, University of Kentucky College of Law. http://www.uky.edu/~buddy/FeministSocialJusticeApproach.htm
[FEP] Claudia Card, ed., On Feminist Ethics and Politics (University Press of Kansas, 1999).
[JC1] Joan C. Callahan, “Procreative Liberty: Whose Procreation, Whose Liberty?” Stanford Law and Policy Review 6:2 (1995): 121-125. http://www.uky.edu/~buddy/RobertsonReview.htm
[KF] Eva Feder Kittay and Ellen K. Feder, eds. The Subject of Care: Feminist Perspectives on Dependency (RowmN nd Littlefield, 2003. .[L] Mary Jeanne Larrabee, ed., An Ethic of Care: Feminist and Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Routledge, 1993).
[MC] Cheshire Calhoun, ed. Setting the Moral Compass: Essays by Women Philosophers (Oxford University Press, 2004).
[T] “Feminist Ethics,” Rosemarie Tong, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2003: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feminism-ethics/
[Z] Naomi Zack, Inclusive Feminism: A Third Wave Theory of Women’s Commonality, Naomi Zack (Rowman and Littlefield, 2005).
There may be some additional handouts or materials made available online or in the Women’s Studies Program offices for you to read there or duplicate.
CLASS SCHEDULE
I. BASICS AND BACKGROUND
8/30 Topics: ` (1) Syllabus
(2) Branches of Philosophy (metaphysics, epistemology,
methodology, value theory)
(3) Moral Philosophy (metaethics, normative ethics)
Presenter: Joan Callahan
Reading: read syllabus carefully
____________________________________________________________
9/6 Topic: Feminism and Feminist Ethics
Reading: (1) [CR] Callahan and Roberts –
http://www.uky.edu/~buddy/FeministSocialJusticeApproach.htm
Presenter: Carl Ehrett (1)
(2) [T] Tong -- http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feminism-ethics
Presenter: Betsy Hopkins (1)
____________________________________________________________
II. EMERGENCE OF FEMINIST MORAL PHILOSOPHY AS
AN ETHICS OF CARE
9/13 Topic: Gilligan and Care Ethics
Reading: (1) [L], Introduction – no presenter
(2) [L], Baier
Presenter: Carl Ehrett (2)
(3) [L], Blum
Presenter: Nicole Conyers (1)
(4) [L], Flanagan and Jackson
Presenter: Jarrod Dotson (1)
____________________________________________________________
9/20 Topic: Gilligan and Care Ethics, Continued
Reading: (1) [L], Gilligan
Presenter: Emma Hasenstaub (1)
(2) [L], Friedman
Presenter: Christa Hodapp (1)
(3) [L], Tronto
Presenter: Ayesha Bhavsar (1)
____________________________________________________________
9/27 Topic: Feminism, dependency, and disability
Reading: (1) [FK], Fraser and Gordon
Presenter: Christa Hodapp (2)
(2) [FK], Young
Presenter: Kamper Floyd (1)
(3) [AKS], Kafer
Presenter: Carl Ehrett (3)
____________________________________________________________
10/4 Topic: Feminism, dependency, and disability, continued
Reading: (1) [FK], West
Presenter: Emma Hasenstaub (2)
(2) [FK], Schutte
Presenter: Kamper Floyd (2)
(3) [FK], Kittay
Presenter: Betsy Hopkins (2)
____________________________________________________________
10/11 Journals day -- prepare journal for submission with midterm assignment
on 10/18
___________________________________________________________
MIDTERM ASSIGNMENT and JOURNALS DUE ON 10/18
10/18 Topic: Care, kinship, and race
Reading: (1) [FK], Fineman
Presenter: Christa Hodapp (3)
(2) [FK], Roberts
Presenter: Jarrod Dotson (2)
(3) [FK], Spelman
Presenter: Ayesha Bhavsar (2)
____________________________________________________________
III. RETHINKING AND OVERCOMING DIFFERENCES
10/25 Topic: The Identity of Women
Reading: (1) [Z], Chapters 1 and 2
Presenter: Carl Ehrett (4)
(2) [Z], Chapters 3 and 4
Presenter: Nicole Conyers (2)
____________________________________________________________
11/1 Topic: Toward Women’s Political Equality
Reading: (1) [Z], Chapters 5 and 6
Presenter: Betsy Hopkins (3)
(2) [Z], Chapters 7 and 8
Presenter: Kamper Floyd (3)
(3) [Z], Summary and Conclusion
Presenter: Nicole Conyers (3)
___________________________________________________________
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 4 PM:
NAOMI ZACK PRESENTATION
Followed by reception
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, DINNER WITH PROFESSOR ZACK
____________________________________________________________
11/8 Topic: Rethinking Gender and Sexual Difference
Reading: (1) [AKS], Alcoff
Presenter: Ayesha Bhavsar (3)
(2) [AKS], Frye
Presenter: Christa Hodapp (4)
(3) [AKS], Ferguson
Presenter: Jarrod Dotson (3)
____________________________________________________________
IV. FINAL REFLECTIONS
11/15 Topic: Some Questions Regarding (Inter- and Same-) Sexuality
Reading: (1) [FK], Feder
Presenter: Nicole Conyers (4)
(2) Card, forthcoming paper in Hypatia
Presenter: Betsy Hopkins (4)
(3) Hoagland, forthcoming paper in Hypatia
Presenter: Emma Hasenstaub (3)
____________________________________________________________
11/22 Topic: Challenging feminist liberalism
Reading: (1) [FEP], Held
Presenter: Carl Ehrett (5)
(2) [AKS], Schwartzman
Presenter: Jarrod Dotson (4)
(3) [AKS], Moody-Adams
Presenter: Ayesha Bhavsar (4)
____________________________________________________________
Reading: (1) [FEP], Card
Presenter: Kamper Floyd (4)
(2) [AKS] Bar On
Presenter: Emma Hasenstaub (4)
(3) [FEP], Tirrell
Presenter: Betsy Hopkins (5)
____________________________________________________________
12/6 Topic: Forms of Speech, Forms of Harm
Reading: (1) [MC], Meyers
Presenter: Emma Hasenstaub (5)
(2) [FEP], Brison
Presenter: Nicole Conyers (5)
(3) [FEP], Callahan
Presenter: Christa Hodapp (5)
Topic: Finishing up
(4) Overview of the Course
Presenter: Kamper Floyd (5)
************************************************************************************
FINAL PAPER DUE, WEDNESDAY, 12/14, 3:30 PM
***************************************************