010099 FS "Doing Justice to the Social" - Sally Haslanger and Social Justice (2023S)

Course content:

In a review of her book "der Wirklichkeit Widerstehen", published by Suhrkamp in December 2021, Zeit Online author Lars Weisbrod calls Sally Haslanger "one of the most precise feminist thinkers" of our time. However, it is not only her feminist epistemology and social constructivist theory of gender and race that make Sally Haslanger an interesting author for social ethics. For Haslanger's philosophy is also characterised by an intensive engagement with the realm of the "social" as a whole. Haslanger criticises that although the social realm is the place "where most of us live most of the time" (Haslanger 2021: 13), the realm of the social is not given sufficient attention by many philosophers and ethicists. Haslanger's social theory emphasises the impact of social practices, social structures and culture on human coexistence and shows that certain social practices and social structures are systematically unjust. Understanding these practices and structures, Haslanger argues, is a prerequisite for thinking about issues of social justice.

For a Christian social ethics that sees itself as a "structure ethics" (Hausmanninger 2002), a concern with social structures and their ontological status as well as with the relationship between social structures and individuals is indispensable. Sally Haslanger's theory of social practices, culture and social structures and the related conception of social and ideological critique provide social ethics with a theory to actually think about questions of social justicestarting from the realm of the social. It enables us to make social practices the object of questions of social justice and thus also of critique (cf. Haslanger 2018: 232).

In this seminar, we will engage with the most important concepts and ideas of Haslanger's social theory and explore the question of what her theory of social practices, culture and social structures means for social ethics as well as for questions of social justice. Haslanger's new book "Doing Justice to the Social" was originally intended to serve as a basis, but unfortunately it has not yet been published. However, since the book is made up of articles that have already been published, these articles will now be used as a basis for reading and discussion in the seminar.

Course objectives:
- To convey central ideas and concepts of Sally Haslanger's social theory and philosophy by reading selected texts.
- The course enables you to recognise and link connections between social theory, social ethics and questions of social justice.
- The course helps you to recognise the importance of questions of social ontology for social ethics.
- The course enables you to discuss the arguments of selected texts of the philosophy of Sally Haslanger and to position yourself in the debates.
- The LV should help you to develop and deepen your skills in reading philosophical texts and writing academic papers.

Course method:
The seminar is designed as a reading seminar. The texts will be carefully read and interpreted by all participants in advance of the respective seminar unit. Questions about the text are prepared and put up for discussion. A seminar impulse will be used to introduce the text and then enter into the joint discussion.