Love's Labor: Essays on Women, Equality and Dependency (Thinking Gender) [Paperback]

Eva Feder Kittay (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415904137 | ISBN-13: 978-0415904131 | Publication Date: December 19, 1998

This fascinating study of women carers explores the significance of dependency work by analyzing John Rawls' influential liberal theory and two examples of public policy - welfare reform and family leave - to show how both theory and policy fail women when they miss the centrality of dependency to questions of justice. A vision of an equal society is required, one which recognizes that those who care for others require the support of the larger community.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...Kittay gives a moving account of her experience raising her profoundly retarded daughter, Sesha; this finely wrought material bears testimony to Kittay's ability to draw significant philosophical conclusions from observation of and reflection on daily life. -- Mary Lyndon Shanley, Hypatia
Love's Labor is a marvelous book: a must-read for anyone interested in feminist moral and political philosophy. -- Louise Collins, National Women's Studies Association Journal
Kittay's Love's Labor is an important contribution to the feminist aspiratio of greater equality and justice for women... It also contributes significantly to both the field of ocntemporary political theory and to present-day social policies. -- S. Matthew Liao, Philosophy in Review
...breathtakingly new to the world of ethics and social theory as to be groundbreaking and critically important. -- Tikkun
Kittay's Love's Labor is an important contribution to the feminist aspiration of greaer equality and justice for women...It also contributes significantly to both the field of contemporary political theory and to present-day social policies. -- S. Matthew Liao
..breathtakingly new to the world of ethics and social theory as to be groundbreaking and critically important. -- Tikkun
Love's Labor combines rigorous analysis, informed political argument and passionate personal reflection. This is a magnificent book which might just transform the way we do political philosophy and lead our political lives. -- Sara Ruddick, author of Maternal Thinking: Toward a Politics of Peace
Both theoretically and practically, this is a profound work of philosophy. Kittay cogently argues that any conception of justice must explicitly attend to the particular situations of dependent people and those who care for them. Her critical analyses of major theories of justice and her proposals for principles guided by the requirements of dependency work constitute a major breakthrough for political theory. Kittay's arguments and narratives should provoke serious reorientation of moral principles for social policy. -- Iris Young, author of Intersecting Voices: Dilemmas of Gender, Political Philosophy, and Policy
Kittay's Love's Labor is an important contribution to the feminist aspiration of greaer equality and justice for women... It also contributes significantly to both the field of contemporary political theory and to present-day social policies. -- S. Matthew Liao, Philosophy in Review

About the Author

Eva Kittay is Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Stony Brook. She is the co-editor of both Metaphor, Women and Moral Theory (1990), and Frames, Fields and Contrasts (1992).

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (December 19, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415904137
• ISBN-13: 978-0415904131
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #252,120 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #86 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Nonfiction > Civil Rights
  • #91 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Nonfiction > Philosophy

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why Disability Matters to Justice, July 8, 2000

By 

Roger S. Gottlieb "Classical music lover" (Jamaica Plain,, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Love's Labor: Essays on Women, Equality and Dependency (Thinking Gender) (Paperback)

I reviewed this book for the spring issue of Tikkun Magazine. In short, I believe it is a feminist classic, opening our eyes to the obvious. The simple point is that neither the disabled nor those who care for them can participate in social life according to a standard of rational, autonomous individuality. The disabled often don't have the autonomy, the caretakers don't have the time or energy. Kittay's book opens up a whole field of discussion: how to reorient our concepts of jutice and community in light of the obvious facts of the different ways in which we are dependent on each other, and on what such dependence can cost those who take it on. Essential reading for ethics and social theory.