Disinterpellation and Emergentism

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

Disinterpellation emerges at the moment of diagnostic disclosure when a patient’s dualistic understanding of sex is intersected by the scientific fact that sex is variant and this variance is inscribed onto his/her body disturbing the subjective coherence of the patient’s identity. This discordance is described as a tear in the fabric of knowledge where two forces, social ideals and scientific facts pull in opposite directions. To mend this tear this book explores three different mechanisms: essentialism, naturalism and emergentism. This chapter critically examines the third of these, emergentism which involves changing the meaning of the term sex (social ideal) to reflect the varience of sex anatomies (scientific fact) and identifying a mechanism for applying ought while respecting autonomy. This requires three processes: firstly, to expose the deeply entrenched assumptions that make sex variance seem unnatural; secondly, to highlight biological perspectives which recognise variance and contingency to be fundamental features of all living things; and thirdly, to identify a means of differentiating desirable and undesirable variance that is not oppressive.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationPhilosophy and Medicine
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media B.V.
Pages141-180
Number of pages40
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2019

Publication series

NamePhilosophy and Medicine
Volume131
ISSN (Print)0376-7418
ISSN (Electronic)2215-0080

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Disinterpellation and Emergentism'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this