180130 VO-L Current Aspects of Gender Ethics (2020S)

How should Feminism, Gender- and Queer-Studies deal with the concepts of morals and ethics? Feminist philosophy critically examines gender hierarchies and intersectional entanglements in all fields of human social co-existence, such as discrimination against women, racism, heterosexism, homophobia, class-struggle. Concepts of normativity (the normative apparatus), subjectivity and autonomy will be critical confronted with Judith Butler’s criticism of the violence of ethics. One aspect of feminist theory focuses on a specific form of care-ethics (care-economy). These theories claim to critically identify and examine the harms of life caused by patriarchal dominance culture and patriarchal economy. A specifically accentuated care-ethics (care-economy) is currently experiencing a new rise, which examines the damage to our lives caused by patriarchal dominant culture, patriarchal gender contract, patriarchal economy (Michaela Moser, referring to Martha Nussbaum). Central elements and purposes of care-ethical approaches are brought into dialogue with feminist and gender-philosophical ideas of ethics (Carol Gilligan and Herta Nagl-Docekal as starting point). Furthermore, different discourses such as the definition of the Council of Europe’s Gender Mainstreaming Programme in 1998 and various antigender polemics are based on specific concepts of human beings, which are an important challenge for gender philosophy. Why does the term gender stir things up in current socio-political debates and which notions of humankind collide in such controversial discussions? What contribution could philosophy make to current gender specific questions? Based on Immanuel Kant’s Conflict of the Faculties this course methodically examines the genuine task of philosophy with regard to the meanwhile highly extensive gender research.- What ethical attitudes does a liberal democracy based on human rights need in the face of the questions of a gender-equal society? Topics such as freedom of action, personal identity, acting and acting out - "agieren" (Alice Pechriggl), political freedom, political action, resistance, protest movements, civil courage are taken up and discussed from a gender-ethical perspective. Can feminist philosophy make a contribution to moral philosophy? What normative principles can gender ethics develop as a groundwork for a society with gender-justice? Are there classical theories of ethics that gender philosophy can draw on to develop principles for a gender-equal society? Are central Kantian and Hegelian ideas (responsible person, autonomy, action, freedom, diversity, friendship and love) in terms of questions of moral philosophy, viewed through the lens of Gender- and Queer-Studies still relevant today?