Feminist Interpretations of William James / / ed. by Erin C. Tarver, Shannon Sullivan.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Penn State University Press Complete eBook-Package 2014-2015
• MitwirkendeR: Carrette, Jeremy,; Code, Lorraine,; Craig, Megan,; Dieleman, Susan,; Goodson, Jacob L.,; Hamington, Maurice,; McKenna, Erin,; Medina, José,; Seigfried, Charlene Haddock,; Sullivan, Shannon,; Tarver, Erin C.,; Tuana, Nancy,
• HerausgeberIn: Sullivan, Shannon,; Tarver, Erin C.,
• Place / Publishing House: University Park, PA : : Penn State University Press, , [2021]; ©2015
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Language: English
• Series: Re-Reading the Canon
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (328 p.)

Widely regarded as the father of American psychology, William James is by any measure a mammoth presence on the stage of pragmatist philosophy. But despite his indisputable influence on philosophical thinkers of all genders, men remain the movers and shakers in the Jamesian universe-while women exist primarily to support their endeavors and serve their needs. How could the philosophy of William James, a man devoted to Victorian ideals, be used to support feminism? Feminist Interpretations of William James lays out the elements of James's philosophy that are particularly problematic for feminism, offers a novel feminist approach to James's ethical philosophy, and takes up epistemic contestations in and with James's pragmatism. The results are surprising. In short, James's philosophy can prove useful for feminist efforts to challenge sexism and male privilege, in spite of James himself.In this latest installment of the Re-Reading the Canon series, contributors appeal to William James's controversial texts not simply as an exercise in feminist critique but in the service of feminism.Along with the editors, the contributors are Jeremy Carrette, Lorraine Code, Megan Craig, Susan Dieleman, Jacob L. Goodson, Maurice Hamington, Erin McKenna, José Medina, and Charlene Haddock Seigfried.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Part I The Promise and Peril of James's Philosophy for Feminism -- 1 The Feminine- Mystical Threat to Masculine- Scientific Order -- 2 "The Woman Question" James's Negotiations with Natural Law Theory and Utilitarianism -- 3 Women and William James -- 4 Lady Pragmatism and the Great Man The Need for Feminist Pragmatism -- Part II Pragmatist Ethics of Care -- 5 The Energies of Women William James and the Ethics of Care -- 6 William James and the Will to Care for Unfamiliar Others The Masculinity of Care? -- Part III Embodiment and Emotion -- 7 Habit, Relaxation, and the Open Mind James and the Increments of Ethical Freedom -- 8 James and Feminist Philosophy of Emotion -- 9 "A Perverse Kind of Pleasure" James, the Body, and Women's Mystical Experience -- 10 The Will Not to Believe Pragmatism, Oppression, and Standpoint Theory -- 11 Incredulity and Advocacy Thinking After William James -- Afterword -- Contributors -- Index