Chandra Talpade Mohanty (born 1955) is a Distinguished Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, Sociology, and the Cultural Foundations of Education and Dean's Professor of the Humanities at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

. Mohanty, a postcolonial and transnational feminist theorist, has argued for the inclusion of a transnational approach in exploring women’s experiences across the world. She is author of ''Feminism Without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity'' (Duke University Press, 2003 and Zubaan Books, India, 2004; translated into Korean, 2005, Swedish, 2007, and Turkish, 2009, Japanese, 2012 and Italian, 2012), and co-editor of ''Third World Women and the Politics of Feminism'' (Indiana University Press, 1991), ''Feminist Genealogies, Colonial Legacies, Democratic Futures'' (Routledge, 1997), ''Feminism and War: Confronting U.S. Imperialism'', (Zed Press, 2008), and ''The Sage Handbook on Identities'' (coedited with Margaret Wetherell, 2010). Her work focuses on transnational feminist theory, anti-capitalist feminist praxis, anti-racist education, and the politics of knowledge. Central to Mohanty’s transnational mission is the project of building a "non-colonizing feminist solidarity across the borders," through an intersectional analysis of race, nation, colonialism, sexuality, class and gender.

Early life and education

Chandra Talpade Mohanty was born in 1955, in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. She has spent time in Nigeria and London. She became a US citizen and continued her education in the United States.Formes, Malia. (2005)
Review of Mohanty, Chandra Talpade, Feminism without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity
. H-Women, H-Net Reviews. Retrieved 28 April 2013. Mohanty graduated in 1974 with honors and a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

in English from the

University of Delhi Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and is recognized as an Institute of Eminence (IoE ...

in India. She continued her education, earning a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in English in 1976. She attended the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Un ...

, from where she earned a master's degree in Education, specifically in teaching English in 1980. She continued her education in Illinois, earning a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987. She is additionally the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate, Faculty of Social Sciences, Lund University Sweden, presented in 2008, and an Honorary Doctorate in humanities from the

College of Wooster The College of Wooster is a private liberal arts college in Wooster, Ohio. Founded in 1866 by the Presbyterian Church as the University of Wooster, it has been officially non-sectarian since 1969 when ownership ties with the Presbyterian Church ...

, Ohio, awarded in 2012. , Mohanty has served as the women's studies department chair at

. Earlier, she served as a professor of women's studies at

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...

in Clinton, New York. She is a member of the advisory boards of the Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy, Center for Intersectional Justice, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Transformations, The Journal of Inclusive Pedagogy and Scholarship,

Feminist Africa ''Feminist Africa'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that addresses feminist topics from an "African continental perspective". It is published by the African Gender Institute (University of Cape Town). Its founding editor-in-chief is Amina Mam ...

(South Africa),

Asian Women The evolution and history of women in Asia coincide with the evolution and history of Asian continent itself. They also correspond with the cultures that developed within the region. Asian women can be categorically grouped as women from the Asia ...

(Korea),

Feminist Economics Feminist economics is the critical study of economics and economies, with a focus on gender-aware and inclusive economic inquiry and policy analysis. Feminist economic researchers include academics, activists, policy theorists, and practitio ...

, and the Caribbean Review of Gender Studies.

Overview of major works

She became known after the publication of her 1984 essay, "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial Discourses",Dua, Ena; Trotz, Alissa. (2002).
Transnational Pedagogy: Doing Political Work in Women's Studies
. ''Atlantis'' 26:2. p66" in which she states, In this essay, Mohanty critiques the political project of Western

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

and its discursive construction of the category of the "

Third World The term "Third World" arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Western European nations and their allies represented the " First ...

woman" as a generic, homogenous, victimized stereotype that Western feminists must save. Mohanty states that Western feminisms have tended to gloss over the differences between Southern women, but that the experience of oppression is incredibly diverse, and contingent upon historical, cultural, and individual reasons. Her paper was a key work, highlighting the difficulties faced by feminists from the Third World in being heard within the broader feminist movement, and it led to a "redefining of power relationships" between feminists within the First and Third worlds. In 2003, Mohanty released her book ''Feminism Without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity''. In this work, she argues for a bridging of theory and

praxis Praxis may refer to: Philosophy and religion * Praxis (process), the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practised, embodied, or realised * Praxis model, a way of doing theology * Praxis (Byzantine Rite), the practice of fai ...

, and the personal and the political. Major themes addressed include the politics of difference, transnational solidarity building, and anticapitalist struggle against neoliberal

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...

. As well as reprinting "Under Western Eyes", in the final section, "Reorienting Feminism", Mohanty offers a response to criticism of the essay, and "reiterates her belief in the possibility, indeed necessity, of building common political projects between Third World and Western feminisms".Thobani, Sunera. (2005). "Feminism without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity (review)", '' Hypatia: A Journal of Feminist Philosophy''. 20:3. pp 221-224.

Selected publications

* Mohanty, Chandra Talpade; Russo, Anne; and Lourdes M. Torres (1991). ''Third World Women and the Politics of Feminism'', Indiana University Press, 338 pages. * Mohanty, Chandra Talpade; and M. Jacqui Alexander (1996). ''Feminist Genealogies, Colonial Legacies, Democratic Futures'', Routledge Press, 464 pages. * Mohanty, Chandra Talpade (2003). ''Feminism Without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity'',

Duke University Press Books Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 Duk ...

, 300 pages. * Mohanty, Chandra Talpade; Riley, Robin L.; and Minnie Bruce Pratt (2008). ''Feminism and War: Confronting U.S. Imperialism'', Zed Books, 280 pages. * Mohanty, Chandra Talpade; Wetherell, M. (2010). ''Sage Handbook of Identities'', U.K: Sage Publications. * Carty, Linda E. and Mohanty, Chandra Talpade, editors (2018). ''Feminist Freedom Warriors: Genealogies, Justice, Politics, and Hope'' Haymarket Books, 200 pages.

References

External links

*
Feminist Freedom Warriors digital archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mohanty, Chandra Talpade Feminist studies scholars 1955 births Living people Indian anti-capitalists Syracuse University faculty Multicultural feminism Postcolonial theorists Delhi University alumni University of Illinois College of Education alumni

Early life and education

Overview of major works

Selected publications

See also

References

Further reading

External links