Dichotomies: An alien perspective
Abstract
This paper explores the implications for sexual asymmetry of the human predilection for construing events on the basis of hierarchically organized dichotomous constructs (eg., same/different; male/female; good/bad). Illustrations of the influence of binary cognitive structuring on the practice of social science, including feminist scholarship, are presented. The inescapable susceptibility of theory and empiricism to prevailing cultural ideologies suggests that the question of sexual equality is antinomal—not open to empirical resolution. Rather, science might better serve the species by actively promologating civilian values, values that cherish and revere within species diversity.Metrics
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