Lesson: A FEMINIST RESPONSE TO CONFLICT

Carole Garrison, Eastern Kentucky University

Introduction: Feminism embraces, if not peace, certainly alternative ways of thinking about resolving conflict, see writings on the Ethics of Care by Nell Nodding and In a Different Voice by  Carol Gilligan.  Nowhere does this become more difficult than among feminist women who  themselves are engulfed within a war.  Not able to theorize in the relative sanctuary of a  peacetime society, women trying to practice feminist ideals in the immediate context of overt male violence have risen to the challenge. They provide lessons for how we might navigate the gulf between women who are Christians and Muslims, Jews and Palestinians, American and Afghani, the religious and the atheist.

Go to the following web site and read the article by Lepa Mladjenovic (February 2000) Women in War: http://k.mihalec.tripod.com/wiw.htm 

Assignment:* Briefly address the following contradictions on how to respond to violence and war  raised by feminists in the reading.  Be sure to conclude each answer with your own response to the dilemma.

A.     Short essay
   1.      To shoot or not?  
   2.      What is the line between national feelings and nationalism?
   3.      Collective guilt – individual responsibility?
   4.      How do we relate to women in depriviledged positions?

B. Women who survived the Balkan wars of the late 80’s and 90’s wrote this article.  What lessons if any can you extrapolate that would help us navigate the recent violence resulting from 9-11?

Essay questions can be divided up between groups or individuals.  The class can then reconvene to present their answers.  It is usually good to have two or more students or groups taking the same question to provide a richer and more diverse discussion.