A Hermeneutic Approach to Gender and Other Social Identities

by Lauren Swayne Barthold

Overview

This book draws on the hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer to inform a feminist perspective of social identities. Lauren Swayne Barthold moves beyond answers that either defend the objective nature of identities or dismiss their significance altogether. Building on the work of both hermeneutic and non-hermeneutic feminist theorists of identity, she asserts the relevance of concepts like horizon, coherence, dialogue, play, application, and festival for developing a theory of identity. This volume argues that as intersubjective interpretations, social identities are vital ways of fostering meaning and connection with others. Barthold also demonstrates how a hermeneutic approach to social identities can provide critiques of and resistance to identity-based oppression.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781349954704
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	05/30/2018
Edition description:	Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2016
Pages:	169
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x (d)

About the Author

Lauren Swayne Barthold is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Gordon College, USA. She is also the Cofounder and Coadvisor of the Gender Studies Minor. She is the author of several works on Gadamer, including Gadamer’s Dialectical Hermeneutics.

Table of Contents

Introduction.- 1. Horizons.- 2. Coherence.- 3. Dialogue.- 4. Application and Play.- 5. Truth and Festival.- Bibliography.