About the Conference

The Gender, the Body & the Objectification Conference (21–22 May 2005) examines three interconnected topics that have been central to much feminist thought: gender, objectification and the body. Issues considered include the sex/gender distinction; the relationship of both sex and gender to the body; the importance of the concepts of sex and gender; the role of objectification in gender and of gender in objectification; and the relationship between the body and objectification. Papers at the conference will relate these topics to race, pornography, prostitution, and surrogate motherhood. The keynote speakers are Sally Haslanger and Rae Langton.

This conference is sponsored by the University of Sheffield's Department of Philosophy, with assistance from the Analysis Trust.

Speakers

Sally Haslanger, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Embodied Meanings: Gender Identity, Racial Identity, Mixed Identities Abstract

Rae Langton, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Speaker's Freedom & Maker's Knowledge Abstract

Nancy Bauer, Tufts University

Pornography & Philosophical Authority Abstract

Susan Berkhout, University of British Columbia

Buns in the Oven: Objectification, Surrogacy & Women's Autonomy Abstract

Christine Overall, Queen's University

A Plea for 'Sex' Abstract

Laurie Shrage, California State Polytechnic University

Is Female to Male as Black is to White?: Sex & Miscibility Abstract

Rebecca Whisnant, University of Dayton

Prostitution as Unwanted Sex Abstract

The conference will take place in the Tapestry Room of Firth Court, Western Bank, at the University of Sheffield (see map — opens in a new window).

We have sent out copies of the poster advertising the conference to many institutions. If you didn't receive one, you can download your own copy here! (PDF file: Adobe Acrobat Reader required; 416 KB)