Logo image
The Ethical Dimension of Work: A Feminist Perspective
Journal article   Peer reviewed

The Ethical Dimension of Work: A Feminist Perspective

Sabine Gürtler and Andrew F. Smith
Hypatia, v 20(2), pp 119-134
01 Apr 2005

Abstract

Business ethics Division of labor Economic motivation Feminist ethics Feminist philosophy Good life Humans Nature Self realization Social ethics Work and Economy
My contribution intends to show that the traditional philosophical concept of work (Marx, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Marcuse, Arendt, Habermas, and the rest) leaves out a crucial dimension. Work is reduced, for example, to the interaction with nature, the problem of recognition, or economic self-preservation. But work also establishes an ethical relation having to do with the needs of others and to the common good-a view of work that should be of particular interest for feminist and gender philosophy. This dimension makes visible, as socially necessary work, the so-called reproductive sphere pertaining to giving birth and raising children, but it also generalizes the aspect of care, which plays a significant role in traditional woman's work. The ethical relation to the other is a characteristic feature of human work and in this sense, the possibility of working is a part of a good life.

Metrics

13 Record Views

Details

Logo image