1996
First Published
3.58
Average Rating
290
Number of Pages
No other cluster of medical issues affects the genders as differently as those related to procreation—contraception, sterilization, abortion, artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, surrogate motherhood, and genetic screening. Yet, the moral diversity among feminists has led to political fragmentation, foiling efforts to create policies that are likely to serve the interests of the largest possible number of women. In this remarkable book, Rosemarie Tong offers an approach to feminist bioethics that serves as a catalyst, bringing together the varied perspectives on choice, control, and connection. Emphasizing the complexity of feminist debates, she guides feminists toward consensus in thought, cooperation in action, and a world that would have no room for domination and subordination.Tong fairly and comprehensively presents the traditions of both feminist and non-feminist ethics. Although feminist approaches to bioethics derive many insights from nonfeminist ethics and bioethics, Tong shows that their primary source of inspiration is feminist ethics, leading them to ask the so-called “woman question” in order to raise women’s consciousness about the systems, structures, and relationships that oppress them. Feminist bioethicists are, naturally, focused on acting locally in the worlds of medicine and science. Their different feminist voices must be raised at the policy table with one message in order to actually do something to make gender equity a present reality rather than a mere future possibility. Inability to define a plan that guarantees liberation for all women must not prevent feminists from offering a plan that promises to improve the estates of many women. Otherwise, a perspective less appealing to women may fill the gap.
Avg Rating
3.58
Number of Ratings
12
5 STARS
17%
4 STARS
33%
3 STARS
42%
2 STARS
8%
1 STARS
0%
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Author
Rosemarie Tong
Author · 3 books
Rosemarie Tong is a Distinguished Professor of Health Care Ethics in the Department of Philosophy and Director of the Center for Applied and Professional Ethics at UNC Charlotte. Receiving her Ph.D. in Philosophy from Temple University in 1978, she has come to be internationally known for her contributions to feminist thought and bioethics. Dr. Tong has authored and co-edited thirteen books, including Ethics in Policy Analysis (1985), Controlling our Reproductive Destiny: A Technological and Philosophical Perspective (1994), Feminist Approaches to Bioethics (1996), Linking Visions: Feminist Bioethics, Human Rights, and the Developing World with Ann Donchin and Sue Dodds (2004), New Perspectives in Health Care Ethics: An Interdisciplinary and Crosscultural Approach (2007) and Feminist Thought: A More Comprehensive Introduction (2008 3rd edition). She has also published over one hundred articles on topics related to feminist theory, reproductive and genetic technology, biomedical research, global bioethics, aging, and healthcare reform.
