On Arcs, Arrows, and Eating with One’s Hands as if There’s No Tomorrow: Some Notes on Bonnie Honig’s A Feminist Theory of Refusal

• Schoonheim, Liesbeth ^[1]
  1. [1] Humboldt University Berlin
• Localización: Res Publica: revista de historia de las ideas políticas, ISSN-e 1989-6115, Vol. 27, Nº. 1, 2024 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Toward a new imagination of revolutionary struggle. Conversations with Bonnie Honig’s A Feminist Theory of Refusal), págs. 5-10
• Idioma: inglés
• DOI: 10.5209/rpub.92177
• Títulos paralelos:
  • De Arcos, Flechas, y del Comer con las manos como si no hubiera un mañana: Apuntes sobre A Feminist Theory of Refusal, de Bonnie Honig
• Enlaces
  • Texto completo
• Resumen
  • español

     En este ensayo exploro algunas nociones clave de A Feminist Theory of Refusal (Una teoría feminista del rechazo), de Bonnie Honig. Yuxtaponiendo su lectura especulativa de Las bacantes de Eurípides al ensayo de Ursula K. Le Guin sobre la "Teoría de la narracion en tanto 'bolsa de transporte'", sostengo que las mujeres de la tragedia no pueden ser consideradas ni como imitadoras de los violentos héroes cazadores masculinos, ni como encarnación subrepticia de las cuidadosas madres recolectoras femeninas. Acatando su negativa a preocuparse y a pensar en el mañana, concluyo sugiriendo que una fabulación crítica de los actos de rechazo de las mujeres debería evitar esperar que nos inspiren, como feministas contemporáneas

  • English

    In this essay, I explore some key notions in Bonnie Honig's A Feminist Theory of Refusal. Juxtaposing her speculative reading of Euripides' Bacchae to Ursula K Le Guin's essay on the 'Carrier Bag Theory of Storytelling,' I argue that the women in the tragedy can be considered neither as imitating masculine, violent hunter-heroes, nor as surreptiously embodying feminine, caring gatherer-mothers. Following their refusal to care and to think about tomorrow, I conclude by suggesting that a critical fabulation of the women's acts of refusal should steer clear from expecting them to inspire us, as contemporary feminists.

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