Dear Talia Welsh,

For what it's worth, on the inspiration of Barrie Karp who is a consummate teacher, I was also discouraged from using the word 'feminism' not by decree but by popular disparagement--so my course was christened 'philosophy of gender',  and in keeping with philosophical targeting of fundamentals, I was teaching feminist theory as I learned it from Jaggar's good old text, but I presented it in such a way that many critical studies could follow from the basic principles I presented in the context of dealing with sexually based inequity: never trust a superficial dualism, think about what equity means and focus on the data, consider ways of challenging cultural stereotypes and social norms for what they are; question authority.  If you like, Talia, have my syllabus as a point of reference for any non-philosophically oriented undergraduate audience.

Thanks Dr. Karp, for the positive nudge.

Helen Lauer redux
U. Ghana, Legon

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Barrie Karp <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 8:09 PM
Subject: Re: Fw: introductory essay on feminist theory/philosophy recommendations

Lots of texts are good points of departure, no one text does it all, and then, so many directions, such wealth in old, newer, current materials.

One suggestion: the beginning of Gender Trouble plus some or all of the bio film about Judith Butler, especially the part where she tells about her youth and how she got into philosophy, what questions she wanted to study and her method.  Then there's another segment where she's teaching a class in France, not too long ago.  All segments of the film are on Youtube.

Another good point of departure is G. Lloyd's book or some of it, the study of 'male' and 'female' in philosophy.

Another good point of departure is Sara Ruddick's book "Maternal Thinking," a book I found helpful to start with in my course Feminist Critiques of 'Reason' -- a course Sally invented, then gave to me in the late 1980s, and I taught it differently as she believed in never teaching her own writing.  Though she had other purposes, the book is a very good introduction to feminism and philosophy, can be used that way.

I like some of the suggestions Helen made below.  And also I support the practice of Talia Welsh, the person who initiated this thread of asking for suggestions and discussion, benefits to all. 

(Some feminist pedagogical history: When I taught at Parsons Liberal Studies, early 1980s, my chair told me I was not permitted to use the word feminism in any course title.)
--
Barrie Karp, Ph.D., Philosophy
[log in to unmask]
New York City!
Teaching since 1970 ~ philosophy; feminist, gender & sexuality theory/inquiry/studies; critical race studies; cultural studies
Faculty Member, The New School 1982 through spring 2008
(NS contract proven illegally violated since spring 2008)
Faculty Member, Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts, 1988 through spring 2008 (NS contract proven illegally violated since spring 2008)

Faculty Member, SVA/Humanities & Sciences/Philosophy & Cultural Studies since 1982
artist, independent scholar, educator

On Tue, Aug 13, 2013 at 3:44 PM, helen lauer <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: helen lauer <[log in to unmask]>
To: "Welsh, Talia" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 5:44 PM
Subject: Re: introductory essay on feminist theory/philosophy recommendations

I recommend [--], starting with the texts you have read which made the penny drop for you, and then guide others through the path you took to understand these concepts, at least for starters. Then you [search engine] terms and look for more recent material since presumably the texts that turned you on may not be the latest. But if they are any good their bibliographies will make reference to the seminal texts, which you would want your students to be exposed to.
[--]
H. Lauer
Philosophy & Classics Dept.
U. Ghana, legon

From: "Welsh, Talia" <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 4:12 PM
Subject: introductory essay on feminist theory/philosophy recommendations

Hello,

I was wondering if any of you have had success providing lower-level feminist theory students with an introductory piece on "what is feminism/feminist theory/philosophy?" and if so, what piece you might recommend. 
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