Hanneke Canters
Encyclopedia
Grace Marion Jantzen was a feminist philosophe
r and theologian
. She was professor of religion
, culture
and gender
at Manchester University from 1996 until her death from cancer at the age of 57.
Arguably, her most famous work is Becoming Divine: Towards a Feminist Philosophy of Religion. In this book, Grace Jantzen proposes a new philosophy of religion
from a feminist perspective. She also authored works on Christian mysticism and the foundations of modernity. Her approach was influenced by Continental scholarship, particularly that of Foucault
.
In her final publication, Foundations of Violence, Jantzen, sketches the fascination with death and violence -- what she calls a 'necrophilia' -- that she believes has characterized much of Western culture from classical antiquity through Christianity to present paradigms. In Jantzen's view, this emphasis on violence and death comes at the expense of the physical body in the present (a denigration of the senses, sexuality and sensuality), and thus, establishes a yearning for mystical worlds beyond the here and now.
Jantzen further argues that this fixation on violence and death is gendered, a largely masculinist symbolic construct that seeks to both repress and veil an anxiety of the maternal body and of female sexuality. Jantzen calls for philosophers and theologians to refuse this obsession with death and destruction and instead focus on forces of ‘natality’ (via a feminine symbolic) that celebrates beauty, desire and the creative impulse.
Feminist philosophy
Feminist philosophy refers to philosophy approached from a feminist perspective. Feminist philosophy involves both attempts to use the methods of philosophy to further the cause of the feminist movements, and attempts to criticise or re-evaluate the ideas of traditional philosophy from within a...
r and theologian
Feminist theology
Feminist theology is a movement found in several religions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and New Thought, to reconsider the traditions, practices, scriptures, and theologies of those religions from a feminist perspective...
. She was professor of religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
and gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
at Manchester University from 1996 until her death from cancer at the age of 57.
Arguably, her most famous work is Becoming Divine: Towards a Feminist Philosophy of Religion. In this book, Grace Jantzen proposes a new philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion is a branch of philosophy concerned with questions regarding religion, including the nature and existence of God, the examination of religious experience, analysis of religious language and texts, and the relationship of religion and science...
from a feminist perspective. She also authored works on Christian mysticism and the foundations of modernity. Her approach was influenced by Continental scholarship, particularly that of Foucault
Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault , born Paul-Michel Foucault , was a French philosopher, social theorist and historian of ideas...
.
In her final publication, Foundations of Violence, Jantzen, sketches the fascination with death and violence -- what she calls a 'necrophilia' -- that she believes has characterized much of Western culture from classical antiquity through Christianity to present paradigms. In Jantzen's view, this emphasis on violence and death comes at the expense of the physical body in the present (a denigration of the senses, sexuality and sensuality), and thus, establishes a yearning for mystical worlds beyond the here and now.
Jantzen further argues that this fixation on violence and death is gendered, a largely masculinist symbolic construct that seeks to both repress and veil an anxiety of the maternal body and of female sexuality. Jantzen calls for philosophers and theologians to refuse this obsession with death and destruction and instead focus on forces of ‘natality’ (via a feminine symbolic) that celebrates beauty, desire and the creative impulse.
Select Bibliography
- Foundations of Violence (2004)
- Julian of Norwich (2000)
- Becoming Divine: Towards a Feminist Philosophy of Religion (1998)
- Power, Gender and Christian Mysticism (1995)