Hannah Arendt''s Power Theory and Feminist Politics

• Main Authors: CHU, JING-RU, 朱靜如
• Other Authors: JIANG, YI-HUAH
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 1999
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/78336474111861505229

碩士 === 淡江大學 === 歐洲研究所 === 87 === The feminist movements are struggling for the equal rights between women and men. Although women''s living situation is better than before, if there is no real gender justice, this is still not a state of freedom and equality for women. In order to challenge the sexuality environment, women issues must be talked over in the public sphere. The main purpose of feminist politics is to encourage more female participants in politics and to evoke women''s power. Then feminists have to answer some important questions: What is the essence of power? What does politics means? Why is the political life for women desirable? One of the great female philosopher in this century, Hannah Arendt, though she denied supporting women''s issues in most situation, has provided a whole theory to answer these questions. That is the main reason that I try to connect Arendt''s power theory with feminism. It will be beneficial for feminists in developing their political action theory. From the beginning, I explain Arendt''s concepts of power and violence. Although power and violence are basic phenomenon in politics, Arendt approved that they are different in essence and violent politics is a distorted structure. "Patriarchy" is the core of this distorted political structure. The aim of Chapter three is to explain Arendt''s theory method-- etymological archeology. Then, in Chapter four, I discuss the different use about the division between public and private sphere in Arendt''s theory and feminism, the rising of modern society, and the difference between "freedom" and "emancipation." In Chapter five I analyze Arendt''s concepts of "plurality" and "identity." This is meaningful in contemporary feminists'' debates, because Arendt''s theory can be used to support the assertion of equality in the public realm, but women do not need to abandon their personal uniqueness at the same time. Finally, I argue that there are some advantages and limitations in Arendtian feminist politics and I try to point out some possible ways of the future research implication to conclude this thesis.