Marianne Janack, the Sidney Wertimer Associate Professor of Philosophy, has published a book, Feminist Interpretations of Rorty (Penn State University Press). It is part of a series, “Re-reading the Canon,” which is dedicated to feminist history of philosophy.
In addition to his unusual relationship to the discipline of philosophy, what distinguishes Richard Rorty from the other giants of late 20th century Anglo-American (analytic) philosophy is his interest in and serious engagement with feminist theory. When Rorty explicitly took up the feminist cause, however, and argued that feminists did not really gain anything from philosophical theory, from deconstruction, or from a realist commitment to truth, and when he celebrated feminist writers like Catherine MacKinnon, Marilyn Frye, and Adrienne Rich for eschewing philosophical discourse in favor of a “prophetic” stance, many feminist philosophers criticized him for it. Janack’s book addresses this debate.
In addition to his unusual relationship to the discipline of philosophy, what distinguishes Richard Rorty from the other giants of late 20th century Anglo-American (analytic) philosophy is his interest in and serious engagement with feminist theory. When Rorty explicitly took up the feminist cause, however, and argued that feminists did not really gain anything from philosophical theory, from deconstruction, or from a realist commitment to truth, and when he celebrated feminist writers like Catherine MacKinnon, Marilyn Frye, and Adrienne Rich for eschewing philosophical discourse in favor of a “prophetic” stance, many feminist philosophers criticized him for it. Janack’s book addresses this debate.
