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Foucault, Feminism, and Sex Crimes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 March 2020

Chloë Taylor
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Abstract

In 1977 Michel Foucault contemplated the idea of punishing rape only as a crime of violence, while in 1978 he argued that non-coercive sex between adults and minors should be decriminalized entirely. Feminists have consistently criticized these suggestions by Foucault. This paper argues that these feminist responses have failed to sufficiently understand the theoretical motivations behind Foucault's statements on sex-crime legislation reform, and will offer a new feminist appraisal of Foucault's suggestions.

Type
Research Article
Information
Hypatia , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , Fall 2009 , pp. 1 - 25
Copyright
Copyright © 2009 by Hypatia, Inc.

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