Vulnerability : reflections on a new ethical foundation for law and politics / edited by Martha Albertson Fineman, Anna Grear

Martha Albertson Fineman's Earlier Work Developed A Theory Of Inevitable And Derivative Dependencies As A Way Of Problematizing The Core Assumptions Underlying The 'autonomous' Subject Of Liberal Law And Politics In The Context Of Us Equality Discourse. Her 'vulnerability Thesis' Represents The Evolution Of That Earlier Work And Situates Human Vulnerability As A Critical Heuristic For Exploring Alternative Legal And Political Foundations. This Book Draws Together Major British And American Scholars Who Present Different Perspectives On The Concept Of Vulnerability And Fineman's 'vulnerability Thesis'. The Contributors Include Scholars Who Have Thought About Vulnerability In Different Ways And Contexts Prior To Encountering Fineman's Work, As Well As Those For Whom Fineman's Work Provided An Introduction To Thinking Through A Vulnerability Lens. This Collection Demonstrates The Broad And Intellectually Exciting Potential Of Vulnerability As A Theoretical Foundation For Legal And Political Engagements With A Range Of Urgent Contemporary Challenges. Exploring Ways In Which Vulnerability Might Provide A New Ethical Foundation For Law And Politics, The Book Will Be Of Interest To The General Reader, As Well As Academics And Students In Fields Such As Jurisprudence, Philosophy, Legal Theory, Political Theory, Feminist Theory, And Ethics -- Equality, Autonomy, And The Vulnerable Subject In Law And Politics / Martha Albertson Fineman -- Kierkegaard And Vulnerability / Alison Assiter -- Vulnerability, Advanced Global Capitalism And Co-symptomatic Injustice: Locating The Vulnerable Subject -- Anna Grear -- Vulnerability And The Liberal Order / Sean Coyle -- More Than Utopia / Morgan Cloud -- After The Storm: The Vulnerability And Resilience Of Locally Owned Business / Susan S. Kuo And Benjamin Means -- Housing The Vulnerable Subject: The English Context / Helen Carr -- Assisted Reproductive Technology Provision And The Vulnerability Thesis: From The Uk To The Global Market -- Rachel Anne Fenton -- A Quiet Revolution: Vulnerability In The European Court Of Human Rights / Alexandra Timmer -- Animals As Vulnerable Subjects: Beyond Interest-convergence, Hierarchy, And Property / Ani B. Satz. Edited By Martha Albertson Fineman, Anna Grear. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Martha Albertson Fineman's earlier work developed a theory of inevitable and derivative dependencies as a way of problematizing the core assumptions underlying the a autonomous' subject of liberal law and politics in the context of US equality discourse. Her a vulnerability thesis' represents the evolution of that earlier work and situates human vulnerability as a critical heuristic for exploring alternative legal and political foundations. This book draws together major British and American scholars who present different perspectives on the concept of vulnerability and Fineman's a vulnerability thesis'. The contributors include scholars who have thought about vulnerability in different ways and contexts prior to encountering Fineman's work, as well as those for whom Fineman's work provided an introduction to thinking through a vulnerability lens. This collection demonstrates the broad and intellectually exciting potential of vulnerability as a theoretical foundation for legal and political engagements with a range of urgent contemporary challenges. Exploring ways in which vulnerability might provide a new ethical foundation for law and politics, the book will be of interest to the general reader, as well as academics and students in fields such as jurisprudence, philosophy, legal theory, political theory, feminist theory, and ethics." While masculinities theory has had much to say on relationships of subordination, few feminist legal scholars have examined the implications of masculinities theory for feminist legal theory. This volume investigates the ways in which emerging masculinities theory in law could inform feminist legal theory in particular and law in general. As many of the chapters in this collection illustrate, law is constantly in a dynamic interaction with masculinities: it has both influenced existing masculinities and has been influenced by those masculinities. The contributions focus feminist and critical theoretical attention on masculinities and consider the implications of masculinities theory for law and legal theory. The book sets out the theoretical trajectory of masculinities studies as a field and its application in law and uses insights from a masculinities approach to study socio-political construction of gender identities in specific settings. It also explores how understanding historical construction of gender identities can inform more effective public policy and activism. Written by leading experts in the area, the book poses important questions about the development of the relationship between feminisms and masculinities theory and will be essential reading for those working in law and gender and related areas. "'Did she choose that?' Or, more normatively, 'Why would she choose that?' This book critiques and offers an alternative to these questions, which have traditionally framed law and policy discussions circulating around controversial genderized practices. It examines the simplicity and incompleteness of choice-based rhetoric and of presumptions that women's conduct is shaped, in an absolute way, either by choice or by coercion. This book develops an analytical framework that aims to discern the meaning and value that women may ascribe to morally ambiguous practices. An analysis of law's approach to polygamy, surrogacy and sex work, particularly in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, provides a basis for evaluating the choice-coercion binary and for contemplating alternate models for assessing, from a law and policy standpoint, the palatability of social practices that appear pernicious to women. Weaving together interdisciplinary research, an innovative analytical framework for assessing choices ostensibly harmful to women, and a critique of the legal rules governing such choices, this book bears relevance for students, scholars, practicing jurists and policymakers seeking a richer understanding of conduct that moves women to the margins of law and society"--Unedited summary from book cover Did she choose that?' Or, more normatively, 'Why would she ever choose that?' This book critiques and offers an alternative to these questions, which have traditionally framed law and policy discussions circulating around controversial genderized practices. It examines the simplicity and incompleteness of choice-based rhetoric and of presumptions that women's conduct is shaped, in an absolute way, either by choice or by coercion. This book develops an analytical framework that aims to discern the meaning and value that women may ascribe to morally ambiguous practices. An analysis of law's approach to polygamy, surrogacy and sex work, particularly in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, provides a basis for evaluating the choice-coercion binary and for contemplating alternate modes for assessing, from a law and policy standpoint, the palatability of social practices that appear pernicious to women. Weaving together interdisciplinary research, an innovative analytical framework for assessing choices ostensibly harmful to women, and a critique of the legal rules governing such choices, this book bears relevance for students, scholars, practicing jurists and policymakers seeking a richer understanding of conduct that moves women to the margins of law and society Cover 1 Contents 6 Notes on Contributors 8 Acknowledgments 12 Introduction: Vulnerability as Heuristic—An Invitation to Future Exploration 14 1 Equality, Autonomy, and the Vulnerable Subject in Law and Politics 26 2 Kierkegaard and Vulnerability 42 3 Vulnerability, Advanced Global Capitalism and Co-symptomatic Injustice: Locating the Vulnerable Subject 54 4 Vulnerability and the Liberal Order 74 5 More than Utopia 90 6 After the Storm: The Vulnerability and Resilience of Locally Owned Business 108 7 Housing the Vulnerable Subject: The English Context 120 8 Assisted Reproductive Technology Provision and the Vulnerability Thesis: From the UK to the Global Market 138 9 A Quiet Revolution: Vulnerability in the European Court of Human Rights 160 10 Animals as Vulnerable Subjects: Beyond Interest-convergence, Hierarchy, and Property 184 Bibliography 212 Index 232 Reflections on a New Ethical Foundation for Law and Politics Critical Queer Studies examines contemporary films and documentaries that dramatize the intersection of law and queer life, analyzing the effects of legal doctrines-jury selection, unwanted sexual advance, negligence, hate crimes, and gay marriage-on the production and reception of queer film and fiction. Exploring the interaction of these discourses by discussing internationally-known American films, the book demonstrates how the law maintains its hold over the queer subject through promoting certain ideological fictions and conversely how film and literature draw upon the material realities of queer legal status to dramatize conflicts between law and the marginalized subject. Critical Queer Studies synthesizes queer studies, law and literature, and film studies, engaging these fields to show how the struggle for gay and lesbian rights has influenced the production of film and fiction. This book draws together major British and American scholars who present different perspectives on the concept of vulnerability and Fineman's vulnerability thesis. The collection demonstrates the broad and intellectually exciting potential of vulnerability as a theoretical foundation for legal and political engagements with a range of urgent contemporary challenges. Exploring ways in which vulnerability might provide a new ethical foundation for law and politics, it is of interest to the general reader, as well as academics and students in fields such as jurisprudence, philosophy, legal theory, political theory, feminist theory, and ethics. "Critical Queer Studies examines contemporary films and documentaries that dramatize the intersection of law and queer life, analyzing the effects of legal doctrine--jury selection, unwanted sexual advance, negligence, hate crimes, and gay marriage--on the production and reception of queer film and fiction."--Page 4 of cover. A jury of one's queers : revisiting the Dan White trial Panic in the project Queer torts : gender trans-gression in the Brandon Teena case The imagined power : the specter of hate crime in Brokeback Mountain Queer exposures : making the reel real in Van Sant's Milk Conclusion : toward a queer political aesthetic. Written by leading experts in the area, this volume investigates the ways in which emerging masculinities theory in law could inform feminist legal theory in particular and law in general. As many of the chapters in this collection illustrate, law is constantly in a dynamic interaction with masculinities. Critical Queer Studies examines contemporary films and documentaries that dramatize the intersection of law and queer life, analysing the effects of legal doctrines-jury selection, unwanted sexual advance, negligence, hate crimes, and gay marriage-on the production and reception of queer film and fiction