Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought

I regularly lecture on the Philosophy Tripos, for all Parts. Students from other Faculties are welcome. For details of this year’s Lecture List see the Faculty of Philosophy website here.

I do not provide lecture materials to students who do not attend lectures other than in exceptional circumstances.

Genital Autonomy Conference

Posted on July 25, 2016 by CChambers

I had a profoundly moving and informative time listening and speaking at the Genital Autonomy 14th Annual Symposium on Changing Global Perceptions: Child Protection & Bodily Autonomy. The Symposium was at Keele University on 14-16 September 2016. You can find details of the Symposium here. My talk was titled “Cultural v. Cosmetic v. Clinical Surgery: Challenging the Distinction.”

There is a general consensus in liberal theory, practice, and law that female genital mutilation (FGM) is a violation of rights and justice that should be banned. However, there is no such consensus about male circumcision or cosmetic surgery, including labiaplasty. These practices are legal in most liberal states and there is no general critique of them in mainstream liberal theory. This talk will consider the philosophical reasons in favour of distinguishing FGM from male circumcision and labiaplasty, and find them wanting. Both cosmetic and clinical surgeries are fundamentally cultural. I argue that male circumcision and cosmetic surgery should be regulated in the same way as FGM – which means, among other things, much stricter regulations on when such surgeries can be performed on children.

Broadly at Vice.Com

Posted on July 14, 2016 by CChambers

I provided comment and analysis for an article on the sharing economy by Sirin Kale at Broadly, titled “ ‘There was a Stranger in My Own House’: Is the Sharing Economy Safe for Women?”. You can read the article here.

Women and minorities appear more likely to experience violence and discrimination on platforms like Uber and Airbnb. How did the gig economy go so wrong?

99 Women for Refugee Women

Posted on July 14, 2016 by CChambers

I am one of Women for Refugee Women’s 99 Women speaking out against detention for refugee women. You can see the other women here.

We asked 99 inspiring women to write a message in support of refugee women, to reflect the 99 pregnant women who were detained in Yarl’s Wood detention centre in 2014. These women include Charlotte Church, Romola Garai, Malorie Blackman, Yasmin Kadi, Noma Dumezweni, Nimco Ali, Caitlin Moran, Bridget Christie, Baroness Valerie Amos, Yvette Cooper MP, Juliet Stevenson, Mary Beard, Sophie Walker, Anoushka Shankar, Caroline Spelman MP, Oona King, Bryony Hannah, and Caroline Lucas MP.

Philosophers on same-sex marriage at Daily Nous

Posted on July 14, 2016 by CChambers

I am one of a panel of philosophers discussing the Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage at the Daily Nous blog. You can read it here.

On Friday, June 26th, the Supreme Court of the United States announced its ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, holding that the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees the recognition and provision of same-sex marriage. It requires each of the 50 states in the US to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples seeking them, and to recognize legitimate same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. … The decision is a landmark in the development of the rights and liberties of gay and lesbian people in the US, and is not without its controversy, of course. Many questions have arisen about the reasoning of the majority and that of the dissenting justices, as well as the significance of the decision. To get clearer on some of these issues, [Daily Nous] asked several philosophers to contribute some brief remarks on the ruling. They are: Elizabeth Brake (Arizona State), Cheshire Calhoun (Arizona State), Clare Chambers (Cambridge), John Corvino (Wayne State), Brook Sadler (South Florida), Edward Stein(Cardozo), and Kevin Vallier (Bowling Green).

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought LT 2016

Posted on November 26, 2015 by CChambers

All sessions are held in the Coleridge Room of Jesus College, Cambridge at 1-2.30pm.

15^th January

Ruth Kinna, Loughborough University
Anarchist Feminism/Anarchism and Feminism: Waves, Exclusions and Intersections

29^th January

Catherine Lu, McGill University
Reparations and Historic Injustice

12^th February

Alan Finlayson, University of East Anglia
Parody and Political Speech

26^th February

Mihaela Mihai, University of Edinburgh
The Art of Solidarity

Global Justice: Agency, Power and Policy

Posted on September 28, 2015 by CChambers

I was delighted to be the keynote speaker at this conference in May 2016, organised by the Centre for Global Ethics at the University of Birmingham. More details of the conference here.

Alan Milne Memorial Address

Posted on September 28, 2015 by CChambers

I gave the Alan Milne Memorial Address at Durham University in October 2016. You can find details of that series here.

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought (MT 2015)

Posted on September 23, 2015 by CChambers

The seminars will take place on Fridays between 1.00-2.30pm in the Coleridge Room, Jesus College. All are welcome.

Convenors: Dr Clare Chambers (Philosophy) and Dr Duncan Bell (POLIS)

9^th October

Adam Swift, Warwick University,
Family Values

23^rd October

Jonathan Wolff, University College London
Forms of Differential Social Inclusion

6^th November

Marc Stears, University of Oxford & Former Chief Speechwriter for Ed Miliband
It’s Not Just the Politics That are Missing:Realist Political Theory and the Everyday

20^th November

Lea Ypi, London School of Economics
Revolutionary Partisanship

Beyond the nuclear family

Posted on September 28, 2015 by CChambers

I had a fascinating time presenting at a conference on “Beyond the Nuclear Family” at Umea University in September 2015. More details here.

Nuffield Council on Bioethics Working Party on Cosmetic Procedures

Posted on September 23, 2015 by CChambers

I am a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics Working Party on Cosmetic Procedures. You can find more about the project, including the other members, here.

Invasive cosmetic procedures are becoming increasingly popular and accessible in the UK, prompting questions about potential risks to users and the lack of regulation and professional standards in this area.

This project will explore ethical issues in cosmetic procedures with a particular focus on the role and responsibilities of health and scientific professionals and others in responding to demand for invasive non-reconstructive procedures that aim to enhance or normalise appearance.

The Limitations of Contract: Regulating Personal Relationships in the Marriage-Free State

Posted on June 10, 2015 by CChambers

Many theorists defend relationship contracts. Some argue that enforceable relationship contracts should be available alongside existing or reformed state-recognised marriage, and available to either married or unmarried couples. Other theorists argue that relationship contracts are the best sort of legal regulation to replace marriage. It is this latter question that is the subject of this chapter. The chapter contrasts contract and directive models of regulation, and notes that contract appears more compatible with liberty than does directive. However this appearance is illusory since contracts can undermine liberty, directives can enhance liberty, and even a contract regime requires default directives. Moreover, there are various problems with the enforcement of relationship contracts. Specific performance is rarely appropriate in the relationship context. The alternative, fault-based compensatory alimony, risks causing injustice to vulnerable parties such as those who take on caring responsibilities (usually women) and children. Relational contract theory attempts to deal with some of these problems but has its own limitations. The chapter concludes that contract is not the best replacement for marriage.

Reviewers’ comments:

The book is “strenuously avant-garde”. The New York Times (5^th April 2016).

Chambers’ chapter is “sobering and refreshing”. Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews (2^nd May 2016).

Chambers, “one of the best-known advocates” of the claim that marriage should not be recognised by the state, contributes a “nuanced and lucid” chapter that is “among the most interesting contributions in the volume.” Hypatia (2017)

You can read more about the book here.

Feminism and Liberalism

Posted on June 10, 2015 by CChambers

In Routledge Companion to Feminist Philosophy, edited by Serene Khader, Ann Gary, and Alison Stone (Routledge, 2017).

For some feminists liberalism is little more than patriarchy in disguise; for others, it is the framework for securing justice. Feminism, like all other positions in political philosophy, is a range of views rather than a single determinate viewpoint. One aspect of this range is that feminism includes both academics and activists, for whom the term ‘liberalism’ can signify rather different things; after all, liberalism is not one single thing either.

In this chapter I start by considering feminist criticisms of liberalism. I discuss two aspects of feminist critique: first, academic feminist critiques of non-feminist liberal philosophy; second, activist feminist critiques of what is variously called “choice feminism”, “third-wave feminism”, or simply “liberal feminism”.

I then move to those feminists who endorse liberalism and argue that a suitably modified liberalism offers the best path to gender equality. This position, “feminist liberalism,” is mostly found in contemporary Anglo-American political philosophy. Feminist liberals understand liberalism as a commitment to substantive, demanding principles of justice based on freedom and equality. Included in this section are those feminist approaches that combine radical feminism’s insights about the limitations of individual choice with feminist liberalism’s commitment to autonomy, equality, and justice.

See more about the book here.

Not the Fun Kind – Conference on Andrea Dworkin

Posted on May 22, 2015 by CChambers

I enjoyed speaking and listening at this event – a one-day conference on Andrea Dworkin, for activists and academics, at Anglia Ruskin University in July 2015. Find details here.

You can watch a video of the session I spoke in here.

Becoming Oneself – The Problem of Gendered Complicity

Posted on June 10, 2015 by CChambers

I responded to a paper by Nancy Bauer at this conference in Birkbeck in June 2015, organised by Prof Susan James. Details here.

BBC Radio 4 Broadcasting House

Posted on June 10, 2015 by CChambers

I took part in a “remunerations panel”, discussing the philosophy behind how much people should be paid. The item was broadcast live on 7th June 2015. You can listen here – the item starts 14 minutes in.

Religion and Political Theory conference

Posted on June 10, 2015 by CChambers

I chaired a session of the Religion and Political Theory Conference at UCL in June 2015, organised by Prof Cecile Laborde. Details are here.

Gender in the History of Early Modern Political Thought

Posted on May 22, 2015 by CChambers

I was delighted to be a representative of contemporary political philosophy, talking about Feminism in Philosophy, in this year’s Balzan-Skinner conference in the History of Political Thought. Find details here. The conference is on 22 May 2015.

David Miller Conference

Posted on May 22, 2015 by CChambers

I was neither an organiser or paper-giver at this conference for David Miller in May 2015, but I was honoured and delighted to give a toast to David, who supervised my DPhil with Lois McNay. Thanks to Chris Bertram for the photo, and to Dan Butt, Sarah Fine and Zofia Stemplowska for organising the conference.

Political Theory and Impact Roundtable

Posted on June 17, 2015 by CChambers

I was part of a roundtable on Political Theory and Impact in March 2015, run by the PSA and held at the House of Lords. The participants were:

Lord Parekh FBA (chair)
Prof Thom Brooks (Law, Durham)
Dr Clare Chambers (Philosophy, Cambridge)
Prof Elizabeth Frazer (Politics, Oxford)
Dr Emily McTernan (Political Science, UCL)

Dr Martin O’Neill (Politics, York)
Prof Michael Otsuka (Philosophy, LSE)
Prof Albert Weale (Political Science, UCL)

D psa_logo_pos_new-1024x268 etails are here.

WOW festival

Posted on February 16, 2015 by CChambers

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I spoke at the WOW – Women of the World – Festival in Cambridge in March 2015, on a panel on Women’s Bodies, Private Places.

Women’s bodies, who do they belong to? A wide- ranging, multi-generational and diverse panel will explore issues around life as a woman. From boobs and body hair to body image and periods, how have attitudes changed and who decides what’s ‘right’? In conversation will be Dr Clare Chambers, author of ‘Fat is a Feminist Issue’ Susie Orbach, Roz Hardie, CEO of campaign group Object, Debra Bourne from All Walks Beyond the Catwalk, poet, singer, writer and actor Keisha Thompson, Alice Wroe from the Herstory project, trans woman Dr Rachael Padman and Becky Talbot from Dhiverse.

See the programme here.

Beauty Demands Workshop

Posted on January 27, 2015 by CChambers

I’m speaking at the first of four workshops on Beauty Demands in Warwick this March. Find details of the workshop here.

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought (LT 2015)

Posted on January 7, 2015 by CChambers

The seminars will take place on Fridays between 1.00-2.30pm in the Coleridge Room, Jesus College. All are welcome.

Convenors: Dr Clare Chambers (Philosophy) and Dr Duncan Bell (POLIS)

16^th January: Hillel Steiner, University of Manchester
Levels of Non-Ideality

30^th January: Jeff McMahan, University of Oxford
Liability, Proportionality, and the Number of Aggressors

13^th February: Kimberlee Brownlee, University of Warwick
Social Contribution Injustice

27^th February: Andrea Sangiovanni, King’s College, London
Moral Equality, Respect, and Cruelty

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought (MT 2014)

Posted on October 23, 2014 by CChambers

Faculty of Philosophy and POLIS

Convenors: Dr Clare Chambers (Philosophy) and Dr Duncan Bell (POLIS)

The seminars take place on alternate Fridays between 1.00-2.30pm in the Coleridge Room, Jesus College. All are welcome.

Michaelmas Term 2014

10th October (week 1)
Miriam Ronzoni, University of Manchester
“Republicanism and Global Politics: Three Requirements in Tension”

24th October (week 3)
Elizabeth Frazer, University of Oxford
“Reading Shakespeare Politically”

7th November (week 5)
Tracy Strong, UC San Diego
“Where Do We Find Ourselves? Hawthorne and the Actuality of Political Space”

21st November (week 7)
Moya Lloyd, Loughborough University
“Naming Absence: The Politics of Body Counts”

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought (MT 2014)

Posted on October 17, 2014 by CChambers

Convenors: Dr Clare Chambers (Philosophy) and Dr Duncan Bell (POLIS)

The seminars take place on alternate Fridays between 1.00-2.30pm in the Coleridge Room, Jesus College. All are welcome.

Michaelmas Term 2014

10th October (week 1)
Miriam Ronzoni, University of Manchester
“Republicanism and Global Politics: Three Requirements in Tension”

24th October (week 3)
Elizabeth Frazer, University of Oxford
“Reading Shakespeare Politically”

7th November (week 5)
Tracy Strong, UC San Diego
“Where Do We Find Ourselves? Hawthorne and the Actuality of Political Space”

21st November (week 7)
Moya Lloyd, Loughborough University
“Naming Absence: The Politics of Body Counts”

Liberal Views

Posted on March 7, 2014 by CChambers

The Philosophers’ Magazine Issue 64 (2014).

A discussion of the separation of church and state.

Dr Clare Chambers

Reader in Political Philosophy at the University of Cambridge

Author Archives: CChambers

Seminar in Contemporary Political Thought