Having recently been introduced to the ideas and ethics of the Third Wave, (the most recent incarnation of feminism), I am interested in reading up about historical feminist thinking and how it has evolved to become what it is today. The Historical Dictionary of Feminist Philosophy provides a new slant on the history of feminism: it looks at the effects of canon philosophy on feminism and female social roles, and also looks at how feminist philosophers have both criticised and made use of traditional philosophies, reinterpreting them for a feminist audience and appropriating elements of canonical thought to create their own.
The Dictionary contains a detailed introduction that summarises the history and development of feminism and feminist philosophy – extremely useful for those unfamiliar with this area of thought. There is also a carefully compiled bibliography at the end, which is split into four sections: General Works; Concepts and Terms; Fields within feminist philosophy; and finally Individual Philosophers. The bibliography does not contain primary works, such as Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Woman but rather articles and monographs, which respond to, or reinterpret these primary works in the context of modern feminism.
In the main body of the dictionary, issues and ideas from this field are covered as well as entries on some of the key figures in this new area of study. The entries are ordered alphabetically rather than thematically, and terms in the text are bolded if they have their own entry. At the end of each entry there are cross‐references to related articles so that readers have an opportunity to read around the topic and explore other aspects. The majority of the dictionary covers western feminism and feminist philosophy, although there are a couple of entries which cover other cultural feminism, such as the entry on Vandana Shiva, an Indian physicist and eco‐feminist, or the entry dealing with the gradual development of African feminist philosophy.
Canon philosophers have only been included if their work has been specific to new feminist philosophy, and are only discussed in terms of influence on, or part in, the emergence of feminist philosophy. There is far less emphasis on male canonical philosophers, and the Dictionary in general aims to “reflect one of the elements of the feminist philosophical enterprise: canon revision” (preface p. xii). Female philosophers, from pre‐Christian Greece (Diotima of Mantinea) to Cixous, Irigaray, Gilligan and Butler, are examined in terms of their own contributions. The entries, although containing autobiographical details, are mainly concerned with the works and ideas that make them so valuable in the field of feminist philosophy. Works are discussed in terms of their relation to philosophy rather than a straightforward summary of the material: for example, de Beauvoir's Le deuxième sexe is discussed in terms of her reaction to traditional philosophies like psychoanalysis, Marxism and Hegelianism.
As well as the entries on the philosophers and feminists themselves, there are other entries covering aspects of philosophy such as moral agency and metaphysics. There are also entries on issues such as the body, marriage, objectification, pornography and religious denominations, all of which are structured by looking at responses from canon philosophy first and then by examining reaction and reinterpretation by feminist philosophical approaches.
This Dictionary looks at a very specific area of feminism, but has also been written and packaged in a manner which will make it accessible and interesting to the casual reader. In terms of formal study, it would be a good supplement to those beginning their studies in the feminist arena and also offers additional material for academics and feminist writers.
