PHIL 300T(S) Mute Witness: Disability, Gender, and Testimony (Same as Women's and Gender Studies 300T) (W)
Inspired by a 1994 film, Mute Witness, in which the lead character plays a mute makeup artist who witnesses a murder and is not believed when she reports it, this course is an introduction to the philosophy of disability through two critical approaches. One is through the concepts of gender and sexuality; the other is through an epistemology of testimony. "Philosophy of disability" expresses at least a two-fold concept. One focuses on the meaning of disability: what does it mean to have a disability or to be disabled? The other focuses on the meaning of philosophy: what new problems and concepts are raised by the phenomenon of disability? In other words, what does the experience of disability reveal about traditional questions in philosophy such as What is the meaning of life (to be healthy)? What is a good life (can disabled people have meaningful lives)? Who can know (can mentally disabled people know legitimately)? Who can speak (are disabled people authoritative witnesses)? Through this course you will be able to: 1) explain both the material and social construction of disability by identifying and locating the myriad forces that have shaped various understandings and experiences of disability; 2) explain and demonstrate the intersectionality of race, gender, sexuality, and disability; 3) understand the relationship between embodiment and disability; 4) explain the existence of a dominant model of testimony in the Western affluent world and its impact upon the disabled minority.
Format: tutorial. Students will work in pairs. Requirements: each student will write and present orally a five-page essay every other week. Students not presenting essays will prepare oral critiques of their partners' essays. Evaluation will be based on written work, oral presentations of essays, and oral critiques.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101, Philosophy 102, Women's and Gender Studies 101 or permission of instructor. Enrollment limit: 10 (expected 10).
Hour: SCHRIEMPF