SOURCE: Bernick, Susan E. “The Logic of the Development of Feminism; or, Is MacKinnon to Feminism as Parmenides Is to Greek Philosophy?” Hypatia 7, no. 1 (winter 1992): 1-15.

In the following essay, Bernick maintains that the position of MacKinnon's work in relation to radical feminism is analogous to the place of Parmenides's work in ancient Greek philosophy.

Feminist theory is in crisis. Given the institutionalization of Women's Studies programs, the research grants funded, and the concomitant proliferation of feminist theories of all descriptions, one might be tempted to believe that any such claim must be an exaggeration at best, and perhaps even a touch hysterical. The belief that a multitude of voices is in and of itself a good thing is held as an article of faith in the religion of liberal tolerance; it is not a matter of reasoned consideration even among the politically sophisticated. While I would concur...