Feminism and Hospitality Gender in the Host/Guest Relationship

by Hamington, Maurice; Ahmed, Fauzia Erfan; Boling, Patricia; Burdick-Shepherd, Stephanie; Davies, Jacqueline M.; Domenico, MariaLaura Di; Green, M Christian; Haggerty, Daniel; Howe, Barbara J.; Pilardi, Jo-Ann; Sander-Staudt, Maureen; Schroepfer, Helen Dale

• ISBN13: 9780739136270
• ISBN10: 0739136275
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-08-14
• Publisher: Lexington Books

Summary

Hospitality is something of a modern paradox. On the one hand, hospitality connotes a nicety or pleasantry easily undervalued as a ritual or formality devoid of epistemological or ethical content. On the other hand, the rise in international conflict and violence, the decline of civil speech, and the increased hostility toward immigrants points to the dire need for hospitable responses to mitigate tensions. Hospitality represents a further paradox for feminism. Historically, women have been saddled with disproportionate responsibility for hospitality and have also been treated as unwelcome guests in so many arenas. For these reasons, feminists have good reason to be wary of addressing hospitality. Yet, feminist theory has taken the lead on developing ontological, epistemological, and ethical approaches to connectedness and relationality such that addressing hospitality appears to be an appropriate extrapolation. Feminism and Hospitality is a collection that negotiates amidst these intriguing paradoxes. Feminism and Hospitality: Gender in the Host/Guest Relationship is the first collection of original works to bring a feminist analysis to issues and theories of personal, political, economic, and artistic hospitality. Furthermore, because feminist theorists have brought so much attention to the nature of human relationships, this volume employs a fresh analysis beyond the tradition in political theory.

Author Biography

Maurice Hamington is associate professor of women's studies and philosophy at metropolitan State College of Denver.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. ix
Introduction	p. xi
Theories of Feminism and Hospitality
Hospitableness: A Neglected Virtue	p. 3
Su Casa es Mi Casa? Hospitality, Feminist Care Ethics, and Reciprocity	p. 19
Hospitality: Agency, Ethics, and Gender	p. 39
Gender and Domestic Hospitality
Shame in Feminine Hospitality	p. 55
Domestic Hospitality: Self, Other, and Community	p. 71
From Saint Martha To Hurricane Katrina: A Feminist Theopolitical Ethic Of Hospitality	p. 91
International Explorations of Feminism and Hospitality
Welcoming Courtyards: Hospitality, Spirituality, and Gender	p. 109
Feminism, Hospitality, and Women in Exile	p. 125
Hospitality and European Muslims	p. 163
Caring Hospitality and Mexican ôIllegalö Immigrants	p. 187
Gender, Hospitality, and Commerce
The Home/Work Interface In Family Hospitality Businesses: Gendered Dimensions and Constructions	p. 207
Hospitality in the Doctor's Office	p. 223
Providing Hospitality In Mid-Nineteenth Century West Virginia Cities	p. 237
Feminism and Hospitality in Film and Literature
Reading Levinas in The Apartment	p. 263
Reading Feminist Hospitality In Plato's Timaeus: Possibilities For Education	p. 281
Selected Bibliography	p. 299
Index	p. 307
Contributor Biographics	p. 311
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