Marilyn Frye (born 1941) is an American philosopher and

radical feminist Radical feminism is a perspective within feminism that calls for a radical re-ordering of society in which male supremacy is eliminated in all social and economic contexts, while recognizing that women's experiences are also affected by other ...

theorist. She is known for her theories on

sexism Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers pri ...

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonis ...

oppression Oppression is malicious or unjust treatment or exercise of power, often under the guise of governmental authority or cultural opprobrium. Oppression may be overt or covert, depending on how it is practiced. Oppression refers to discrimination ...

, and sexuality. Her writings offer discussions of feminist topics, such as:

white supremacy White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...

male privilege Male privilege is the system of advantages or rights that are available to men solely on the basis of their sex. A man's access to these benefits may vary depending on how closely they match their society's ideal masculine norm. Academic stud ...

, and gay and lesbian

marginalization Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. It is used across discipline ...

. Although she approaches the issues from the perspective of justice, she is also engaged with the

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

epistemology Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics. Epis ...

, and moral psychology of social categories.

Education and career

Frye received a BA with honors in philosophy from Stanford University in 1963 and a PhD in philosophy at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 1969. She wrote her dissertation, titled ''Meaning and Illocutionary Force'', under the supervision of

Max Black Max Black (24 February 1909 – 27 August 1988) was an Azerbaijani-born British-American philosopher who was a leading figure in analytic philosophy in the years after World War II. He made contributions to the philosophy of language, the philo ...

. Before coming to Michigan State University in 1974, she taught in the philosophy department at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

. From 2003 until her retirement, Frye was University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University; she also served as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies of the College of Arts and Letters. In 2008 she was the

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

Romanell Lecturer.

Research and publications

Frye is the author of ''

The Politics of Reality ''The Politics of Reality: Essays in Feminist Theory'' is a 1983 collection of feminist essays by philosopher Marilyn Frye. Some of these essays, developed through speeches and lectures she gave, have been quoted and reprinted often, and the b ...

'' (1983), a collection of nine essays which has become a "classic" of feminist philosophy. In her chapter entitled "Oppression" in the book ''Feminist Frontiers'', Frye discusses the idea of the

double bind A double bind is a dilemma in communication in which an individual (or group) receives two or more reciprocally conflicting messages. In some scenarios (e.g. within families or romantic relationships) this can be emotionally distressing, creatin ...

in gender. This double bind refers to "situations in which options are reduced to a very few and all of them expose one to penalty, censure or deprivation". Frye applies this principle to gender and the dilemma women often face in her discussion of oppression. For example, it is neither socially acceptable for a woman to be sexually active or for her to be sexually inactive and labelled a "man-hater" or "uptight". This absence of choice permeates so thoroughly into women's day-to-day life that even small things like how they choose to dress or talk are criticized. Frye acknowledges that men face issues as well, but differentiates the issues of men and women through the metaphor of a bird cage. As Frye tells it, each individual bind women face can be thought of as a single bar in a cage: by itself, it isn't enough to contain the bird. But, with enough bars, the bird is trapped inside the cage, left with nowhere to go. This is the complete absence of choice Frye describes: how it is the culmination of issues women face that is so "immobilizing" and why, for Frye, their struggle—and not men's—is considered

. Frye is openly lesbian, and much of her work explores social categories—in particular, those based on

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

and

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures ...

Awards and distinctions

*Frye was named Distinguished Woman Philosopher of the Year by the Society for Women in Philosophy in 2001. *Frye was chosen as

's Romanell Professor in Philosophy for 2007-2008. The annually-awarded Romanell Professorship "recognizes the recipient's distinguished achievement and substantial contribution to the public understanding of philosophy." Recipients of this award also offer a series of lectures open to the public; Frye's series was entitled "Kinds of People: Ontology and Politics."

Bibliography

Books

* * *

Chapters in books

* "Categories and Dichotomies", ''Encyclopedia of Feminist Theories'', ed., Loraine Code, NY: Routledge, (2000) * "Essentialism/Ethnocentrism: The Failure of the Ontological Cure", ''Is Academic Feminism Dead? Theory in Practice,'' ed., the Center for Advanced Feminist Studies at the University of Minnesota, NYU Press, (2000) * *

Journal articles

* "The Necessity of Differences: Constructing a Positive Category of Women," ''SIGNS: Journal of Women in Culture and Society,'' Vol.21, No.4, Summer (1996)

References

External links

Michigan State University faculty profile page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frye, Marilyn 1941 births 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American philosophers 20th-century American women writers 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American philosophers 21st-century American women writers 21st-century LGBT people American feminist writers American lesbian writers American women non-fiction writers American women philosophers Cornell University alumni Feminist philosophers Feminist studies scholars Lesbian academics Lesbian feminists LGBT people from Michigan Living people Michigan State University faculty Philosophers of language Radical feminists Date of birth missing (living people)