Page 161 - Šolsko polje, XXXI, 2020, 5-6: Teaching Feminism, ed. Valerija Vendramin
P. 161
abstracts ■ povzetki
Biljana Kašić
FEMINISM AS EPISTEMIC DISOBEDIENCE
AND TRANSFORMATIVE KNOWLEDGE: EXPLORATION
OF AN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL CENTRE
Living under the threat of demonising feminism along with its de-politi-
cisation and commodification in an age of “postfeminist sensibility” (Gill,
2007), and the reduction of women’s/gender studies programmes world-
wide is more than a reason to revisit the feminist politics of knowledge
here and now. Since the neoliberal trend is impregnated “with old-fash-
ioned academic design that counts on (neo)conservativism” (Kašić, 2016),
retrograde claims and (neo)traditional morality, one challenge is how to
respond to the sexist, androcentric, anti-gender and racist assumptions
that are deepening inequality and fostering social exclusion and discrim-
ination as well as to disrupting the mainstream knowledge of scientifici-
ty (Pereira, 2017). By using the Centre for Women’s Studies in Zagreb as
an example, the paper argues that an alternative form of education out-
side mainstream academic institutions, despite various obstacles and in-
ner problems, can ensure a freeing up from hegemonic and misogynist
knowledge more than a university education by creating a powerful space
toward feminism as an epistemic disobedience and activist theory, and by
providing the political subjectivisation of both teachers and students. In
this regard, three topics are of analytical interest here: feminism as subver-
sive knowledge; critical pedagogy from the perspective of “epistemology
of discomfort”; and the potential held by feminism as an engaged (activ-
ist) theory. The questions and themes proposed are not new but continue
on previous epistemic dilemmas and disputes both around feminism and
progressive ideas around education, and coming to terms with feminist
urgency and ethical responsibility (Spivak, 2012).
Key words: women’s studies, feminism, “pedagogy of discomfort”, alterna-
tive education, epistemic disobedience
FEMINIZEM KOT EPISTEMSKA NEPOSLUŠNOST
IN TRANSFORMATIVNA VEDNOST: VPOGLED V ALTERNATIVNI
IZOBRAŽEVALNI CENTER
Življenje pod grožnjo demoniziranja feminizma, skupaj z njegovo depoli-
tizacijo in komodifikacijo v času »postfeministične senzibilnosti« (Gill,
2007), in redukcija ženskih študij/študij spolov po vsem svetu pomenijo
več kot le poziv k ponovnem obratu k feministični politiki vednosti tu-
kaj in sedaj. Ker je neoliberalni trend prepojen »s staromodno akadem-
sko obliko, ki se opira na (neo)konzervatizem (Kašić, 2016), retrogradni-
mi izjavami in (neo)tradicionalno moralnostjo, je eden od izzivov, kako
159
Biljana Kašić
FEMINISM AS EPISTEMIC DISOBEDIENCE
AND TRANSFORMATIVE KNOWLEDGE: EXPLORATION
OF AN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL CENTRE
Living under the threat of demonising feminism along with its de-politi-
cisation and commodification in an age of “postfeminist sensibility” (Gill,
2007), and the reduction of women’s/gender studies programmes world-
wide is more than a reason to revisit the feminist politics of knowledge
here and now. Since the neoliberal trend is impregnated “with old-fash-
ioned academic design that counts on (neo)conservativism” (Kašić, 2016),
retrograde claims and (neo)traditional morality, one challenge is how to
respond to the sexist, androcentric, anti-gender and racist assumptions
that are deepening inequality and fostering social exclusion and discrim-
ination as well as to disrupting the mainstream knowledge of scientifici-
ty (Pereira, 2017). By using the Centre for Women’s Studies in Zagreb as
an example, the paper argues that an alternative form of education out-
side mainstream academic institutions, despite various obstacles and in-
ner problems, can ensure a freeing up from hegemonic and misogynist
knowledge more than a university education by creating a powerful space
toward feminism as an epistemic disobedience and activist theory, and by
providing the political subjectivisation of both teachers and students. In
this regard, three topics are of analytical interest here: feminism as subver-
sive knowledge; critical pedagogy from the perspective of “epistemology
of discomfort”; and the potential held by feminism as an engaged (activ-
ist) theory. The questions and themes proposed are not new but continue
on previous epistemic dilemmas and disputes both around feminism and
progressive ideas around education, and coming to terms with feminist
urgency and ethical responsibility (Spivak, 2012).
Key words: women’s studies, feminism, “pedagogy of discomfort”, alterna-
tive education, epistemic disobedience
FEMINIZEM KOT EPISTEMSKA NEPOSLUŠNOST
IN TRANSFORMATIVNA VEDNOST: VPOGLED V ALTERNATIVNI
IZOBRAŽEVALNI CENTER
Življenje pod grožnjo demoniziranja feminizma, skupaj z njegovo depoli-
tizacijo in komodifikacijo v času »postfeministične senzibilnosti« (Gill,
2007), in redukcija ženskih študij/študij spolov po vsem svetu pomenijo
več kot le poziv k ponovnem obratu k feministični politiki vednosti tu-
kaj in sedaj. Ker je neoliberalni trend prepojen »s staromodno akadem-
sko obliko, ki se opira na (neo)konzervatizem (Kašić, 2016), retrogradni-
mi izjavami in (neo)tradicionalno moralnostjo, je eden od izzivov, kako
159
