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In assessing the current state of feminism and gender studies, whether on a theoretical or a practical level, it has become increasingly challenging to avoid the conclusion that these fields are in a state of disarray. Indeed, feminist and gender studies discussions are beset with persistent splits and disagreements. This reader suggests that returning to, and placing centre-stage, the role of philosophy, especially critical realist philosophy of science, is invaluable for efforts that seek to overcome or mitigate the uncertainty and acrimony that have resulted from this situation. In particular, it claims that the dialectical logic that runs through critical realist philosophy is ideally suited to advancing feminist and gender studies discussions about broad ontological and epistemological questions and considerations, intersectionality, and methodology, methods, and empirical research. By bringing together four new and eight existing writings this reader provides both a focal point for renewed discussions about the potential and actual contributions of critical realist philosophy to feminism and gender studies and a timely contribution to these discussions.
List of contents
Making Waves, and Beyond Part I Philosophical Preliminaries: Critical Realism, Feminism, and Gender 1. Feminism, Realism, and Universalism 2. Post-structuralist and Constructivist Feminism 3. Sex and Gender: A Critical Realist Approach 4. A Defence of the Category 'Women' 5. Gender Theory Non-conforming: Critical Realist Feminism, Trans Politics, and Affordance Theory Part II Critical Realism and Intersectionality 6. Developing a Critical Realist Positional Approach to Intersectionality 7. Agency and Ontology within Intersectional Analysis: A Critical Realist Contribution 8. Why we keep Separating the 'Inseparable': Dialecticising Intersectionality Part III Methodology and Methods: Critical Realism and Empirical Research 9. The Reality of Gender (Ideology): Using Abduction and Retroduction in Applied Critical Realist Research 10. After Constructivism: Rethinking Feminist Security Studies through Interdisciplinary Research 11. Integrating Critical Realist and Feminist Methodologies: Ethical and Analytical Dilemmas 12. Critical Realist Discourse Analysis, Motherhood, and Gender: A Systematic Methodological Approach to Analysis Further Reading
About the author
Michiel van Ingen is an Associate Lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University and a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.
Steph Grohmann is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the Centre for Homeless and Inclusion Health at the University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Lena Gunnarsson is a Researcher and Teacher in Gender Studies at Örebro University and Lund University, Sweden.
Summary
This reader suggests that returning to, and placing centre-stage, the role of philosophy, especially critical realist philosophy of science, is invaluable for efforts that seek to overcome or mitigate the uncertainty and acrimony which have characterised the discipline in recent years.
