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Postmodern feminist emancipatory research: is it an oxymoron?
Author(s) -
Fahy Kathleen
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
nursing inquiry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.66
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1440-1800
pISSN - 1320-7881
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1800.1997.tb00134.x
Subject(s) - postmodernism , oxymoron , humanism , feminism , sociology , subject (documents) , relation (database) , aesthetics , epistemology , philosophy , gender studies , theology , linguistics , database , library science , computer science
Many nurse‐researchers who use feminist methods believe that postmodernism undermines die scientific and emancipatory aspirations of our discipline and diey are dierefore wary of postmodern dieories. One of die main direats of postmodernism is die critique of humanism because humanism forms the ediical foundation for both nursing and feminism. These critiques expose die dark underside of humanistic ideals and show how, paradoxically, humanism has functioned to oppress people. The arguments presented here help emancipatory researchers to defend dieir practices, bodi in relation to research participants and in die ways in which die subject is dieorized. The conclusion is diat postmodernism can be compatible widi politically motivated, humanistically‐based inquiry.