Knowledge, Ignorance and Power

This course will introduce and examine a range of topics at the intersection of epistemology and political/social/feminist philosophy, examining our actual epistemic practices in light of the relations of power and subordination that exist between differently placed groups in society, and looking at different proposals for how this should shape our theorizing about knowledge and ignorance. Topics covered will include the opposition between standpoint theory and empiricism within feminist epistemology, the relevance of feminist and anti-racist philosophy to traditional epistemological debates (such as the analysis of knowledge or the truth conditions of knowledge ascriptions), alternative standards for assessing claims to knowledge (such as those offered by Collins's black feminist epistemology), different varieties of epistemic injustice (including but not limited to the two varieties discussed in influential work by Miranda Fricker: testimonial injustice and hermeneutical injustice), the epistemology of ignorance, and epistemic objectification. Credit Level: 10 Year taken: Year 4 Undergraduate

Not running in 2025/26