Blog #10

    Feminist Ethics, Chapter 9 – Julia Driver 

    Driver presents us with a great deal of information in Chapter 9. I selected this chapter because I’m already interested in what Carol Gilligan has to say about feminist ethics. Much of the chapter is dedicated to Driver delving in to the influence Gilligan’s work has had on feminist ethics and how feminine ethics has evolved since the time of Gilligan. Right away, Driver criticizes the biases that men have created in traditional ethics such as Utilitarianism and Kantian ethics.

I appreciated that Driver points out the good work that Gilligan has done to correct that moral stereotypes that women have had to endure over time and that men believe the male “justice” view is superior. The chapter goes on to explore many studies that involved findings from the Victorian age and Kohlberg.

As I think about relating this to my current life, I am reminded of a role I held with a previous job in Chicago. I was in charge of managing an elite, high social-class women’s board for a museum. What was interesting was the way I was treated by these women—as if I was just a lay worker, there to wait on their every need and want. I bring this up because I think it shows how feminist ethics have evolved (and not always in the best way). Although I was an educated professional women, working in a respected job, I was made out to be treated like a worthless minion. It does to show that Driver is accurate in stating feminist ethics are evolving all the time.