Theories of the Flesh

"A theory in the flesh means one where the physical realities of our lives all fuse to create a politic born of necessity," writes activist Cherríe L. Moraga. This volume of new essays stages an intergenerational dialogue among philosophers to introduce and deepen engagement with U.S Latinx and Latin American feminist philosophy, and to explore their "theories in the flesh." It explores specific intellectual contributions in various topics in U.S. Latinx and Latin American feminisms that stand alone and are unique and valuable; analyzes critical contributions that U.S. Latinx and Latin American interventions have made in feminist thought more generally over the last several decades; and shows the intellectual and transformative value of reading U.S Latinx and Latin American feminist theorizing. The collection features a series of essays analyzing decolonial approaches within U. S. Latinx and Latin American feminist philosophy, including studies of the functions of gender within feminist theory, everyday modes of resistance, and methodological questions regarding the scope and breadth of decolonization as a critical praxis. Additionally, essays examine theoretical contributions to feminist discussions of selfhood, narrativity, and genealogy, as well as novel epistemic and hermeneutical approaches within the field. A number of contributors in the book address themes of aesthetics and embodiment, including issues of visual representation, queer desire, and disability within U. S. Latinx and Latin American feminisms. Together, the essays in this volume are groundbreaking and powerful contributions in the fields of U.S Latinx and Latin American feminist philosophy.

Andrea J. Pitts is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at University of North Carolina, Charlotte. Their publications appear in IJFAB: The International Journal of Feminist Approaches to Bioethics, Hypatia, Radical Philosophy Review, and Inter-American Journal of Philosophy. Pitts is also co-editor of Beyond Bergson: Examining Race and Colonialism through the Writings of Henri Bergson (SUNY Press, 2019). Mariana Ortega is Associate Professor in the Departments of Philosophy and Women's, Gender, and Sexualities Studies, and an affiliate in Latina/o Studies at the Pennsylvania State University. She is co-editor with Linda Martín-Alcoff of the anthology Constructing the Nation: A Race and Nationalism Reader (SUNY Press, 2009) and author of In-Between: Latina Feminist Phenomenology, Multiplicity, and the Self (SUNY Press, 2016). She is the founder and director of the Latina/x Feminisms Roundtable (Formerly the Roundtable on Latina Feminism), a forum for U. S. Latina/x and Latin American feminisms. José Medina is Walter Dill Scott Professor of Philosophy at Northwestern University. His books include Speaking from Elsewhere (SUNY Press, 2006), and The Epistemology of Resistance (Oxford University Press, 2012), which received the 2012 North-American Society for Social Philosophy Book Award.