“Eve’s Perfection: Spinoza on Sexual (In)Equality.”

Journal of the History of Philosophy 50.4 (2012) 50 (4):559-580 (2011)
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Abstract

This paper outlines Spinoza’s two diametrically opposed views on the question of sexual equality. In the Political Treatise, he contends that women are naturally inferior to men, and that they are unable to practice virtue. Yet, he presents an antithetical portrait of Eve in his retelling of the Fall in the Ethics. There, Eve’s nature accords perfectly with Adam’s, and their relationship might have promoted virtue in each of them. Attention to Spinoza’s version of the Fall reveals the profound importance of the human bond for the enjoyment of freedom, and the possibility that women are not categorically excluded from Spinoza’s vision of virtue.

Other Versions

reprint Sharp, Hasana (2012) "Eve’s Perfection: Spinoza on Sexual (In)Equality". Journal of the History of Philosophy 50(4):559-580

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Hasana Sharp
McGill University

References found in this work

Women and consent.Carole Pateman - 1980 - Political Theory 8 (2):149-168.
What counts as an Individual for Spinoza?Steven Barbone - 2002 - In Olli Koistinen & John Ivan Biro (eds.), Spinoza: Metaphysical Themes. New York: Oup Usa. pp. 89-112.

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