Also Catharine MacKinnon:  Towards a Feminist Theory of the State



Lindsay J Thompson
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The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
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-----Original Message-----
From: Feminist ethics and social theory [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ann Ferguson
Sent: Thursday, September 24, 2009 10:03 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Sovereignty as masculine

Adrien: You should look at Iris Young's pieces on the masculinist
state, one of which appeared in Hypatia right after the 2001 crisis in
US politics.  She is being more historical than your question implies
and arguing that a certain kind of state sovereignty is conceived as
masculine and based on patriarchal ideology and power.  I am sure
there are feminists who have written on Machievelli and the classical
liberal social contract theorists (Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau) who bring
out that their ideas of how and from whom governments and states get
their sovereignty is from male citizens thru a social contract that
excludes women.  Carole Pateman in the Sexual Contract might be
another source and the more intersectional analysis that she and
Charles Mills have done in their latest book Contract and Domination
argue that the racial and sexual contracts were historical creations
meant to limit sovereignty and political power to white men.

Ann Ferguson

On 9/23/09, Adriel Trott <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> FEASTers:
> I'm looking for references to thinkers who argue that a view of politics
> based on sovereignty is masculine.  It seems like a general assumption, but
> does anyone specifically make that argument?  I'd appreciate the help.
> Thanks.
> Adriel
>


-- 
Ann Ferguson
Professor emerita of Philosophy and Women's Studies UMass Amherst and
feminist activist