Academic Plan
Below, I have attached my independent study proposal. I have no additional catching up to do and am on track to finish and hand in my annotated bibliography next week, as discussed with Professor Sypnowich.
Draft Independent Study Outline – Hannah Burnham
Supervisor: Prof. Christine Sypnowich
Frequency: Tri-weekly or Bi-weekly meetings (subject to availability)
Term: Fall/Winter 2025–26
Independent Study Description and Learning Objectives
- This independent study will let me explore the areas of philosophy that I’ve become most passionate about: feminist thought and the philosophy of law. I want to use the semester to think seriously about how legal systems both reflect and shape power relations, and how feminist philosophers have challenged (or sometimes worked within) those systems.
- A big part of my interest is in the tension between liberal legal ideals such as rights, neutrality, and equality, and the feminist worry that these concepts can hide or reproduce deep inequalities within North American legal and political systems. I’d also like to analyze concrete cases where these questions are reflected, such as Canadian constitutional decisions on equality or reproductive rights.
- I hope to come away with a clearer understanding of how philosophy can help us make sense of law’s role in both reinforcing and resisting injustice, as well as to build my own voice in these debates. The independent study will give me the space to bring theory and practice together, with a major research paper as the main project, supported by a case study and a set of readings that we’ll work out together.
Structure & Assignments
Annotated Bibliography (15%) – Beginning of Term
- 8–10 key sources (philosophical texts, feminist legal theory, jurisprudence).
Short annotations (200 words each) explaining main arguments and relevance.
Helps build the foundation for the research paper.
Legal Case Study (25%) – Midterm
- Choose a case relevant to feminist legal theory (e.g., equality rights under the Canadian Charter, reproductive rights jurisprudence, workplace discrimination).
Write a 2,500–3,000 word analysis applying at least two theoretical frameworks (e.g., liberal feminist vs. radical feminist, Marxist, or relational autonomy approaches).
Major Research Paper (60%) – End of Term
- 6,500–8,000 words.
- Topic: student-chosen, with supervisor approval (possible themes: feminist critiques of rights discourse, reproductive justice and autonomy, state neutrality and multiculturalism, intersectionality in law).
Must integrate both theoretical texts and at least one applied legal context.
Preliminary Reading List
- Catharine MacKinnon, Toward a Feminist Theory of the State.
- Susan Moller Okin, Justice, Gender, and the Family.
- Jennifer Nedelsky, Law’s Relations.
- Iris Marion Young, Justice and the Politics of Difference.
- Nancy Fraser, Unruly Practices.
- Carole Pateman, The Sexual Contract.
- Kimberlé Crenshaw, “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex.”
- Selected Canadian Supreme Court decisions (e.g., Andrews v. Law Society of B.C., R. v. Morgentaler, Law v. Canada, - Fraser v. Canada).
Tentative Meeting Schedule (can be adjusted as needed)
Meeting 1: Intro, confirm readings & assignments.
Meeting 2: Liberal legal theory & feminist critiques (Hart, Rawls, MacKinnon, Pateman). Annotated Bibliography due around this time.
Meeting 3: Equality rights, autonomy & relational approaches (Nedelsky, Young, Fraser). Begin planning Case Study.
Meeting 4: Intersectionality & applied jurisprudence (Crenshaw, Canadian cases). Case Study due around this time.
Meeting 5: Alternative visions of justice & paper development (Okin, Fraser). Discuss research paper draft.
Meeting 6: Wrap-up and final reflections. Major Research Paper due.
Draft Independent Study Outline – Hannah Burnham
Supervisor: Prof. Christine Sypnowich
Frequency: Tri-weekly or Bi-weekly meetings (subject to availability)
Term: Fall/Winter 2025–26
Independent Study Description and Learning Objectives
- This independent study will let me explore the areas of philosophy that I’ve become most passionate about: feminist thought and the philosophy of law. I want to use the semester to think seriously about how legal systems both reflect and shape power relations, and how feminist philosophers have challenged (or sometimes worked within) those systems.
- A big part of my interest is in the tension between liberal legal ideals such as rights, neutrality, and equality, and the feminist worry that these concepts can hide or reproduce deep inequalities within North American legal and political systems. I’d also like to analyze concrete cases where these questions are reflected, such as Canadian constitutional decisions on equality or reproductive rights.
- I hope to come away with a clearer understanding of how philosophy can help us make sense of law’s role in both reinforcing and resisting injustice, as well as to build my own voice in these debates. The independent study will give me the space to bring theory and practice together, with a major research paper as the main project, supported by a case study and a set of readings that we’ll work out together.
Structure & Assignments
Annotated Bibliography (15%) – Beginning of Term
- 8–10 key sources (philosophical texts, feminist legal theory, jurisprudence).
Short annotations (200 words each) explaining main arguments and relevance.
Helps build the foundation for the research paper.
Legal Case Study (25%) – Midterm
- Choose a case relevant to feminist legal theory (e.g., equality rights under the Canadian Charter, reproductive rights jurisprudence, workplace discrimination).
Write a 2,500–3,000 word analysis applying at least two theoretical frameworks (e.g., liberal feminist vs. radical feminist, Marxist, or relational autonomy approaches).
Major Research Paper (60%) – End of Term
- 6,500–8,000 words.
- Topic: student-chosen, with supervisor approval (possible themes: feminist critiques of rights discourse, reproductive justice and autonomy, state neutrality and multiculturalism, intersectionality in law).
Must integrate both theoretical texts and at least one applied legal context.
Preliminary Reading List
- Catharine MacKinnon, Toward a Feminist Theory of the State.
- Susan Moller Okin, Justice, Gender, and the Family.
- Jennifer Nedelsky, Law’s Relations.
- Iris Marion Young, Justice and the Politics of Difference.
- Nancy Fraser, Unruly Practices.
- Carole Pateman, The Sexual Contract.
- Kimberlé Crenshaw, “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex.”
- Selected Canadian Supreme Court decisions (e.g., Andrews v. Law Society of B.C., R. v. Morgentaler, Law v. Canada, - Fraser v. Canada).
Tentative Meeting Schedule (can be adjusted as needed)
Meeting 1: Intro, confirm readings & assignments.
Meeting 2: Liberal legal theory & feminist critiques (Hart, Rawls, MacKinnon, Pateman). Annotated Bibliography due around this time.
Meeting 3: Equality rights, autonomy & relational approaches (Nedelsky, Young, Fraser). Begin planning Case Study.
Meeting 4: Intersectionality & applied jurisprudence (Crenshaw, Canadian cases). Case Study due around this time.
Meeting 5: Alternative visions of justice & paper development (Okin, Fraser). Discuss research paper draft.
Meeting 6: Wrap-up and final reflections. Major Research Paper due.