Silk Knots and Little Nothings (or the case against 'women in philosophy' initiatives) Rebecca Buxton, University of Bristol

Event details

Royal Institute of Philosophy Lecture

Over the last twenty years, we have witnessed a boom in “women in philosophy” initiatives. These books, essay collections, anthologies, conferences, and summer schools all organize the contributions of philosophers through the lens of their gender. Women in philosophy initiatives create valuable spaces of community and collective identity in a historically hostile discipline. These projects can therefore be seen as an act of correction against a background of long-standing exclusion. However, this paper argues that women in philosophy initiatives may eventually undermine the project of enduring inclusion. In making this argument, I do three things. First, I outline the sense of unease felt by some engaging in and responding to these projects. I argue that this unease arises not only from the potential to disregard the individuality of “women philosophers” but also a question of how this affects the movement's broader goals. Second, I outline what I take to be three implicit goals of this movement: recovery, recognition, and enduring inclusion. Third, I argue that women in philosophy initiatives can (or eventually will) slow or harm the project of enduring inclusion. By primarily framing these philosophers as women philosophers, we will fail to include them substantively as philosophers. If we want to ensure that women’s inclusion in philosophy is genuine and robust, we will therefore eventually have to move beyond framing women philosophers through the lens of gender. 

About the speaker

Rebecca Buxton is a lecturer in social and political philosophy at the University of Bristol. Her work focuses on displacement, migration, and citizenship. She has also published on women's exclusion from philosophy, includingThe Philosopher Queens, a collection of essays on (and by) women in philosophy.