78239 International Feminist Perspectives
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Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Requisite(s): ( 78101c Postgraduate Legal Research OR ((22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C07122 Graduate Diploma Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in C04147 Master of Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in C07074 Graduate Diploma Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04264 Master of Legal Studies)) OR ((94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04236 Juris Doctor OR 142 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04250 Juris Doctor Master of Business Administration) AND 70106c Principles of Public International Law AND 70107c Principles of Company Law) OR (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04320 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Professional Legal Practice AND 70106 Principles of Public International Law))
The lower case 'c' after the subject code indicates that the subject is a corequisite. See definitions for details.
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Description
Feminist critiques of the theory and practice of law have revealed that legal doctrine and procedures are not gender neutral and that law actually creates and perpetuates inequality. This subject explores feminist insights into how law is gendered through an examination of key concepts, including the public/private divide, sameness and difference, and the category 'woman'. Drawing on international feminist theoretical frameworks, including Western (North America/European) and South Asian perspectives, this subject explores the application of feminist critique to key areas of legal regulation, including family and reproduction, employment and discrimination, violence against women, colonialism and immigration. The subject investigates feminist contributions to law reform as well as critical theoretical perspectives which fundamentally question the transformative power of law. The subject aims to assist students to develop skills in critical thinking and to question assumptions that underlie legal education and practice.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | understand a range of feminist critiques of the theory and practice of law, including key concepts in feminist legal theory; |
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| 2. | understand areas of legal regulation which have been subject to feminist critique and be able to identify feminist contributions to law reform; |
| 3. | engage with international feminist theoretical insights in critical analysis of law and legal regulation; |
| 4. | produce scholarly writing that demonstrates detailed knowledge of feminist theory, analysis and critical evaluation, and the use of interdisciplinary research sources; |
| 5. | engage in effective oral communication that demonstrates familiarity with feminist legal theory through contribution to class discussion and debate. |
Content (topics)
1 Historical development of feminist legal theory
2 The public/private divide in the liberal state
3 Formal equality and substantive inequality
4 Truth and objectivity: Feminist critiques of legal knowledge
5 The category ‘woman’: Feminist approaches to sex and gender
6 Critical approaches to law: Race, sexuality and performativity
7 Feminism and colonialism
8 Universalism and cultural relativism: Human rights in international law
9 Feminist legal method: Feminist judgments projects
10 Sex discrimination: Women at work in the neoliberal age
11 Romance, sexual violence and rape
12 Regulating women’s bodies: Abortion and assisted reproductive technologies
13 Wrap up: Where to from here?
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Class Participation
| Weight: | 20% |
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Assessment task 2: Essay
| Weight: | 80% |
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| Length: | 5000 Words |
