The Material of Knowledge: Feminist Disclosures

by Susan J. Hekman

Susan Hekman believes we are witnessing an intellectual sea change. The main features of this change are found in dichotomies between language and reality, discourse and materiality. Hekman proposes that it is possible to find a more intimate connection between these pairs, one that does not privilege one over the other. By grounding her work in feminist thought and employing analytic philosophy, scientific theory, and linguistic theory, Hekman shows how language and reality can be understood as an indissoluble unit. In this broadly synthetic work, she offers a new interpretation of questions of science, modernism, postmodernism, and feminism so as to build knowledge of reality and extend how we deal with nature and our increasingly diverse experiences of it.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Academic, Feminism, Theory

145 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Wenjing Fan]

SIMM52. Haven't read much of it. Mainly about how we understand the construction of the world. The post-constructism thinks it is all by discourse, but there is actually a real world. So the author tried to find a feminism way that can convert both sides into it.

[Lily Ruban · Rating 4 out of 5]

so right about Wittgenstein, but wrong about (conscious) Foucault

[Eleanor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm still reading this book, but it draws together some interesting Feminist theory relating to epistemology and ontology. Now all I have to do is to work out how I'm going to relate these ideas to communication theory (but I do have a few possible ways in mind).

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great summaries of some of the current conversations happening in material studies. I do wish Hekman had elaborated a bit on her social ontology. I'd like to see that theory fleshed out in more detail.