Martha Nussbaum, "Women and Cultural Universals"

Questions for Making Connections Within the Reading:

1. Martha Nussbaum takes issue with the ideas of "tradition," "custom," and "culture." To what specifically does she specifically object about these ideas? Does she want simply to define the terms themselves in a rather different way, or does she actually believe that there really are no such things as traditions, customs, and cultures?

2. In Nussbaum's discussion of several recent academic conferences, she goes out of her way to emphasize that her opponents are "leftists" or "leftwing." What does the term left mean in the context of her argument? Is Nussbaum philosophically unsympathetic to the goals of the left? Would you describe her as a rightist--that is, a political or cultural conservative?

3. Why would anyone object to universalism? Some readers may find Nussbaum's argument so compelling that the position of her opponents might sound unreasonable, even absurd. What arguments might be offered in defense of "otherness"? When considered sympathetically, are the arguments for "otherness" as flat-footed as Nussbaum implies? Can we safely infer from the success of our society's values that they will offer the same good service in all other places at all other times? Does Nussbaum say that they will?

Questions for Writing:

1. Nussbaum often uses the pronoun we, as she does in this passage:

We recognize other humans as human across many differences of time and place, of custom and appearance. We often tell ourselves stories, on the other hand, about anthropomorphic creatures who do not get classified as human, on account of their form of life and functioning. On what do we base these inclusions and exclusions? In short, what do we believe must be there, if we are going to acknowledge that a given life is human?

Who is Nussbaum's "we," here and throughout the selection? Nussbaum's opponents would allege that her "we" is a false universal: it ostensibly represents everyone but actually represents only educated, white, and relatively wealthy people living in the West. Does this argument seem fair to you? Does such a criticism make it impossible to offer general insights of any kind about human experience?

2. What does Nussbaum mean when she says that her list of "Central Human Functional Capabilities" is "proposed as the object of a specifically political consensus"? Why a political consensus? What difference does it make if we understand our obligations to others as political in nature rather than as, say, the product of divine revelation or pure reason? Does Nussbaum imply that the list can grow or shrink over time? If the items on the list can change, in what sense does it remain "universal"?

Questions for Making Connections Between Readings:

1. What might Nussbaum learn from reading Deborah Tannen? One question that might arise for Nussbaum is whether our own institutions--especially the educational system--discourage in unacknowledged ways the growth of the "central capabilities." Drawing from your own experience as well as from Tannen's observations, would you conclude that the "argument culture" poses a significant barrier to the achievement of a good life? As you explore this question, consider as well the character of Nussbaum's reasoning. Does she participate in the argument culture? If Nussbaum does, would you say that she undermines her own credibility? Or could it be that the argument culture is less damaging than Tannen assumes?

2. Once we begin to take full advantage of "germinal choice technology," as Gregory Stock predicts we will in his essay "The Enhanced and the Unenhanced," will it still make sense to talk about "central human functional capabilities"? Once we enter the age of the "posthuman," will it ever be possible to refer once again to any common humanity? Does Nussbaum's argument for the importance of "central human functional capabilities" require that we take steps to curtail germinal choice technology? Or might it be the case instead that this technology will actually help to develop and extend our capabilities?

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