HNRS-120 | Feminist Ethics

Full Title: Feminist Ethics

Topic Description:

Birth control, abortion, prostitution, housework, sexuality, gender, care, love… Who gets to decide what is “right” and “good”? For centuries, scholars have explored these very questions. This course uses the concept of “reproduction” as a central focus for the interdisciplinary exploration of feminist ethics. The politics of reproduction often focus on how people of different genders are able to use their bodies in public and private ways. Beyond this, we also explore the concept of “social reproduction”: how unpaid and underpaid labor (such as domestic labor and care work, often performed by women and people of color) is essential to the functioning of the capitalist economy. We will engage with multiple traditions of ethical thought: feminist theory, queer theory, Marxism, anarchism, and more. Note that sensitive issues such as rape will be discussed in this class.

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: December 2017