INTRODUCTION TO FEMINIST PHILOSOPHY

Fall Semester 2014

School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Instructor: Ashley Bohrer
Contact Information: ajbohrer@gmail.com
Office:
Office Hours: Mondays 12:00 -1:00 pm and by appointment

Course Description.
This course is intended to be a survey introduction to the problems, discourses, theories, and histories
of feminist philosophy. We will read a broad cross-section of feminist writers from multiple different
perspectives on a variety of themes and topics. We will consider analytic (Anglo-American),
continental European, and transnational feminisms in their specificity, as well as the connections and
critiques between them. We will interrogate concepts of sex, sexual difference, and gender as they
relate to the institutions of the family, work, the state, the media, and art in a global context. In
considering the diagnoses and proposed solutions of feminist philosophers, we will also consider the
role of feminist philosophy in our twenty-first century world.
In particular, we will examine feminist philosophies as they discuss and intersect with other modes of
oppression racism, homophobia, classism, transphobia, ableism, and fatphobia. We will also
frequently engage contemporary problems, news, popular culture, and art as they relate to themes and
topics of our readings.In this way, we will think about the ways in which culture can at once constitute
one method of stabilizing narratives of oppression and open possibilities for exposing and resisting it.
A general note about the course as a whole: This is an intellectually challenging course that demands
careful and consistent reading, active engagement, and an open and curious attitude. This class is
concerned with reading, and lots of it: we will be focusing our attention on engaging with a variety of
voices, which is to say, you are not expected to agree with everything we read, but you are expected to
understand the terms of each text and situate the argument within the context of the course. Learning is
much easier if you approach each assignment openly, with the intention to understand why the writer is
saying what he or she says, imagine where theyre coming from, and take seriously their reasons.

Office Hours
My office hours will be on Monday afternoons. If you are unable to meet with me during this time,
please send me an email or see me before or after class to set up an alternative time to meet with me. If
you have a question answerable in a few short sentences, you are welcome to email me. For all other
inquiries, please come meet with me in person.

Grades
ASSESSMENT RUBRIC
A: Full, active, respectful, participation in class, based on clear evidence of having done the reading
consistently, carefully and thoughtfully. Essays are well written and well presented, and include
original and creative thinking. Essays are properly documented, grammatically sound, stylistically

successful, well argued, and include appropriate citations.

B: Active participation in class, based on clear evidence of having done the reading consistently and
well. Essays are well written and well presented, and are based on a serious attempt to engage the text.
C: Participation and preparation for class not as consistent or focused as it could be. Essays exhibit a
level of competence, but might suffer from one or more of the following problems: structural problems,
lack of organization, unclear argument or inadequate presentation, inaccurate or insufficient
documentation, failure to address grammatical or stylistic problems.
D: Inconsistent participation and preparation for class. Essays do not always answer the question, or
show evidence of having understood the issues. Essays are unfocused, unclear, poorly argued,
structurally unsound, and/or grammatically unsound, such that it is difficult to tell what the author has
read or understands.
F: Persistent failure to participate or show adequate preparation for class. Failure to produce work in a
timely fashion, to adhere to guidelines, or to show serious effort or engagement in the class. Missing
work and/or inadequate work. Little or no attempt or commitment to show any improvement.
Your grade in this class will be determined as follows:
Group Presentations: 25%
Midterm Exam: 30%
Final Paper: 30%
Attendance and Participation: 15%

ASSIGNMENTS:
GROUP PRESENTATION: On the first day of class, you will sign up for a presentation date. On the
date of your presentation, you and your group members will have approximately half of the class
period to present the assigned readings. Your presentation should include: 1) an overview of the text's
argument. This section of your presentation is intended to show that you have grasped the overall point
of the piece as well as the problem to which it responds. 2) definitions and explanations of at least
three important philosophical concepts. This aspect of your presentation is intended to demonstrate that
in addition to a grasp on the macro, you have a good working knowledge of the micro: the individual,
yet connected elements which make up the text. This will help us to, as a class, develop a set of shared
philosophical vocabulary. 3) some kind of interactive group activity of your choosing. This section of
the course is intended to get your fellow classmates involved in your presentation and to solicit
different responses, perspectives, ideas, and connections to the course material. 4) an analysis of how
the text's concepts relate to popular culture (film, television, music videos, news reports, public art,
etc). You should be prepared to have visual aids in this section. This aspect of your presentation is
intended to show to your classmates how you think this reading is connected to the daily world we all
inhabit. ** All presentation materials must be turned in to me for approval at least 36 hours in advance.
This will give a chance to give you feedback and for changes to be made before the presentation
should I feel they are necessary **
FINAL PAPER: Your final paper will be a 6-8 page double spaced argumentative paper. It must engage
at least two of the term's readings and must make an original argument about them. Your paper must
contain a clear, thoughtful, and explicitly stated thesis.

I also highly recommend the following writing guide, created by two English professors at SUNY
Geneseo named Paul Schacht and Celia Easton. Even a quick read will help your
writing immensely.
http://writingguide.geneseo.edu/
*** I do not accept late work ***
EMAIL ETIQUETTE: the instructor/student relationship is a professional one, and thus emails are
expected to be written in a respectful and courteous manner. This means that any and all emails should
include the following: (1) an informative subject line that includes the title and section number of this
course: LSP 200, (2) a specific and appropriate question, and (3) a closing including your full name.
This also means that emails should be sent in a timely fashion and the student should allow 24 hours
for a response.
GENDER NEUTRAL & GENDER SPECIFIC LANGUAGE, NAMES AND ACCENTS: Academics
no longer use the pronoun he to apply indiscriminately to everyone, nor do we use the term man
when we are referring to humanity or people in general. In our writing, when we are making
generalizations we should use gender neutral pronouns, that is, sie and hir, s/he, him or her, they/their,
etc. When referring to a specific person or group of people, we should use the language and pronouns
that they prefer if we know them. Furthermore, we should be attentive to the spelling and accents of
authors names and the words they use. Finally, all authors must be referred to by their entire names, or
only their last names, never by their first names, whether in speech or writing.

Attendance
Attendance is mandatory, and I will take attendance every day. You each get one free absence; after
that, I will begin to detract points from your participation grade. Moreover, students should be aware
that simply showing up to class is not enough to earn a good participation grade. Students must come
to class alert, with the book in hand, having read and reflected on the assigned sections, and
ready to participate in class discussion with thoughtful remarks.
The Schools policy on attendance is that students are expected to attend class regularly, and that if they
need to miss class, they can do so only for reasonable cause (sickness, family emergency, religious
holiday). Moreover, according to the Schools policy, if a student has four or more absences, whether
for reasonable cause or not, the student fails the class. I will adhere to this policy. Moreover, if a
student has three absences, he or she entirely forfeits the 10% part of the grade that goes to
participation. Repeated absenceseven for good reasonsare simply not compatible with receiving
credit for a course, especially for a philosophy course, since a crucial part of learning philosophy is
through in-class discussions. Please note that coming to class five or more minutes late counts as half
an absence (so if you are late six times, you clock up three absences).

Plagiarism
My policy on plagiarism is simple: Do not do it, at all, for any reason, ever. All cases of plagiarism will
be treated severely: you will automatically receive a 0 for the assignment, and, depending on the
severity of the case, plagiarism may also result in an F for the entirety of the course. I will also report
instances of plagiarism to SAIC's internal disciplinary board. The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
prohibits dishonesty such as cheating, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information to the

School (Students' Rights and Responsibilities, Student Handbook). To find out more about plagiarism
and how to avoid it, you can (1) go to the SAIC Web site, select Departments, Degrees, and Academic
Resources, then select Libraries, then select Flaxman Library, and then click on the plagiarism
links under the For Our Faculty tab; or (2) read about it in the Student Handbook under the section
Academic Misconduct.
If you are confused or unclear about what constitutes plagiarism, do not hesitate to ask.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities:

Students with known or suspected disabilities, such as a reading or writing disorder, ADD/ADHD,
and/or a mental health or chronic physical condition, and who think they would benefit from assistance
or accommodations, should first contact the Disability and Learning Resource Center (DLRC) by
phone at 312.499.4278 or email at dlrc@saic.edu. DLRC staff will review your disability
documentation and work with you to determine reasonable accommodations. They will then provide
you with a letter outlining the approved accommodations for you to deliver to all of your instructors.
This letter must be presented before any accommodations will be implemented. You should contact the
DLRC as early in the semester as possible. The DLRC is located on the 13th floor of 116 S. Michigan
Ave.

Classroom Behavior
Im not interested in policing your behavior in the classroom, but I will insist that you treat one another
with respect during class. Additionally, laptops and cellphones must remain turned off and put away
during class time.

Course Materials
You are required to purchase the following text:
Estelle Friedman, The Essential Feminist Reader ISBN-10: 0812974603
ISBN-13: 978-0812974607
All texts not in this volume will be posted to Canvas. You MUST print these readings out and bring
them to class with you.
In addition to the required texts, you must begin to read the news (if you don't already), and to visit
news sites and cultural analysis that are sensitive to the dynamics of race, sex, gender, sexuality, ability,
and class. Some of the most well-known of these sites include: Colorlines (colorlines.com), Mother
Jones (motherjones.com), Racialicious (raclialicious,com) Jezebel(jezebel.com), Bitch Media
(bitchmagazine.org), The Feminist Wire (thefeministwire.com), among others. Doing so will both help
you to see the kinds of news and popular culture analyses that you might emulate in your reading
responses and will allow you to take the concepts, histories, and problems we are discussing in class
and to see them operating in the world around you. I recommend you read at least one article daily; to
make this an easier goal, try 'following' these sites' companion blogs or 'liking' their pages on facebook;
each of these sites posts their articles simultaneously on their websites, blogs, and facebook pages.

READING SCHEDULE
WEEK ONE:
September 1: Labor Day, Class Cancelled
WEEK TWO: Early Rights-Based Feminisms
September 8: Essential Feminist Reader (EFR): Chapter 5: Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the
Rights of Woman
Chapter 7: Sarah M. Grimke, Letters on the Equality of the Sexes
September 9: Add/Drop period ends
WEEK THREE: Feminism, Slavery, and Abolition
September 15: EFR:
Chapter 10: Sojourner Truth Ain't I a Woman?
Canvas:
bell hooks Sexism and the Black Female Slave Experience from Ain't I
a Woman? Black Women and Feminism
WEEK FOUR: Feminism, Slavery, and Abolition Continued
September 22: EFR:
Chapter 16: Anna Julia Cooper A Voice from the South
Canvas:
Dorothy Roberts Reproduction in Bondage from Killing the Black Body
WEEK FIVE: Early Socialist, Marxist, and Anarcha Feminisms
September 29: EFR:
Chapter 16: Friedrich Engels, from The Origin of the Family, Private
Property, and the State
Chapter 8: Flora Tristan, The Emancipation of Working Class Women
Chapter 25: Alexandra Kollontai, The Social Basis of the Woman
Question
WEEK SIX: Analytic Liberal Feminism
October 6:
Canvas:
Catherine McKinnon, Difference and Dominance
Martha Nussbaum, Feminism, Internationalism, Liberalism from Sex
and Social Justice
WEEK SEVEN:
October 13:

MIDTERM EXAM

WEEK EIGHT:
October 20: EFW:
Canvas:
WEEK NINE:
October 27: Canvas:

Chapter 48: Combahee River Collective, A Black Feminist Statement

Chapter 49: Audre Lorde The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the
Master's House
Audre Lorde, Age, Race, Sex, and Class: Women Redefining
Difference from Sister Outsider
Kimberle Williams Crenshaw, Mapping the Margins

October 28: Last day to withdraw

WEEK TEN:
November 3:

No reading. In class assignment TBA

WEEK ELEVEN:
November 10:

bell hooks, Feminism is for Everybody Chapters 7,8, 10, 11, 12

WEEK TWELVE: Contemporary Latina Feminism

November 17: EFR:
Chapter 56: Gloria Anzaldua: La Conciencia de la Mestiza: Toward a
New Consciousness
WEEK THIRTEEN: Contemporary Latina Feminism, continued
November 24: Canvas:
Maria Lugones, Heterosexualism and the Colonial/Modern Gender
System. Hypatia 22.1 (2007): 186-209.
WEEK FOURTEEN:Critique Week
December 1: No Class
WEEK FIFTEEN: Transfeminisms
December 8: Canvas:
Nicholas M. Teich, Transgender 101: Chapter One: What Does it Mean to
be Transgender?; Chapter Seven: Discrimination, Exploring the
Boundaries that Transpeople Face
WEEK 16: Anti-Carceral Feminisms
December 15: Canvas:
Project NIA, What is the Prison Industrial Complex?
Wesley Ware, Rounding up the Homosexuals 77-85 and
Lori A. Saffin Identities Under Siege: Violence against Transpersons of
Color in Captive Genders: Trans Embodiment and the Prison-Industrial
Complex