1st Edition

Maternal Ethics and Other Slave Moralities

By Cynthia Willett Copyright 1996

    In Maternal Ethics and Other Slave Moralities which includes the first extended philosophical discussion of the works of Frederick Douglass, Cynthia Willett puts forward a novel theory of ethical subjectivity that is aimed to counter prevailing pathologies of sexist, racist Eurocentric culture. Weaving together accounts of the self drawn from African-American and European philosophies, psychoanalysis, slave narratives and sociology, Willett interrogates what Hegel locates as the core of the self: the desire for

    Introduction; Part One The Sensuality of the Good; Chapter 1 The Origin of Ethics in Music and Dance; Chapter 2 Tactile Sociality; Part Two Correspondences: The Attunement of Self and Other; Chapter 3 The Greeting; Chapter 4 The Figure of the Face; Part Three Dissonance and Social Struggle; Chapter 5 Hegel's Master Narrative of Freedom and the African American Experience; Chapter 6 A Slave Narrative of Freedom; Chapter 7 Spirit;

    Biography

    Cynthia Willett

    "Cynthia Willett has written an original rethinking of Hegel and the Hegelian concept of recognition that will make an important and original intervention into feminist social theory and political philosophy in general. Her book brilliantly moves from Hegelian analysis of maternal ethics to a powerful redefinition of the political struggle against racism." -- Drucilla Cornell
    "Maternal Ethics and Other Slave Moralities is a rare and refreshing philosophical text...a must read for all those that view the philosophical enterprise as more than merely interpreting of the world." -- Auslegung
    "... very interesting." -- Ethics
    "... significant ... Willet's inquiry leaves one feeling much more optimistic about the potential for liberatory ethics and practices." -- Social Theory and Practice
    "Cynthia Willett has written an original rethinking of Hegel and the Hegelian concept of recognition that will make an important and original intervention into feminist social theory and political philosophy in general. Her book brilliantly moves from Hegelian analysis of maternal ethics to a powerful redefinition of the political struggle against racism
    ." -- Drucilla Cornell
    "Maternal Ethics and Other Slave Moralities is a rare and refreshing philosophical text . . . a must read for all those that view the philosophical enterprise as more than merely interpreting of the world
    ." -- Auslegung