Catharine MacKinnon Summary

In the following review, Nicholson contends that Toward a Feminist Theory of the State exposes the strengths and weaknesses of radical feminism. Toward a Feminist Theory of the State was written over ... Read more

In the following review, Eisenstein argues that the essays in Toward a Feminist Theory of the State are “theoretically significant and important contributions” to feminist theory but not... Read more

In the following review, Farrell regards Toward a Feminist Theory of the State as a valuable study for both feminist theorists and sociologists with an interest in feminist legal theory. Toward a Femi... Read more

In the following review, Elshtain contrasts stylistic elements of MacKinnon's Toward a Feminist Theory of the State with Mary Lyndon Shanley's Feminism, Marriage, and the Law in Victoria... Read more

In the following review, MacCormick examines MacKinnon's feminist legal theory in Toward a Feminist Theory of the State and finds parallels between her ideas and those of Elizabeth F. Kingdom i... Read more

In the following review, MacManus praises Sexual Harassment of Working Women for MacKinnon's ability to present complex legal arguments in a clear and simple manner. In this study [Sexual Haras... Read more

In the following review, Dworkin outlines MacKinnon's arguments against pornography in Only Words, speculating on how her opinions affect national and state governments and the issue of censors... Read more

In the following review, Pasewark considers how MacKinnon's arguments will affect the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and asserts that Only Words “has the appearance, both in fo... Read more

In the following review, Young asserts that, despite the “hypnotic power” of MacKinnon's prose, the central arguments in Only Words are exaggerated, “spurious,” and ... Read more

In the following review, Stepp lists several flaws in MacKinnon's theories on pornography and hate speech in Only Words but notes that the debate the work has inspired is ultimately important a... Read more

In the following review, Williams comments that the legal arguments in Only Words will be difficult for British readers to fully comprehend. Best known as an eloquent campaigner against pornography, C... Read more

In the following review, Golding explores MacKinnon's concept of free speech as presented in Only Words, focusing on the question of speech versus action as it relates to pornography. Catharine... Read more

In the following review, Sennett notes that while Only Words is MacKinnon's weakest work, it owes its popularity “to the assimilation of feminism into a rhetoric of aggression, sexual re... Read more

In the following review, Olson presents several objections to MacKinnon's arguments in Only Words but concludes that the book will “almost certainly reconfigure the national debate over ... Read more

In the following review, Rosen traces the development of sexual harassment law, discusses the law's recent challenges, and considers MacKinnon's impact on theories of sexual harassment. ... Read more

In the following essay, Schaeffer argues that certain aspects of MacKinnon's feminist theory must be understood within a liberal framework. Feminist theory has contributed a great deal to our u... Read more

In the following review, Hein delineates the major thematic concerns of the essays collected in Feminism Unmodified. Catharine MacKinnon will be best known to readers of The Women's Review of B... Read more

In the following review, Whitman outlines MacKinnon's feminist perspective of law, calling Feminism Unmodified a “rough, powerful, important work.” In Feminism Unmodified, a colle... Read more

In the following review, Hart compliments Feminism Unmodified as a “tightly-argued, consistent and provoking work of social theory.” MacKinnon is a feminist lawyer, first known (and wide... Read more