Maria Jankowska
Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
Mansplaining, a term coined by Rebecca Solnit in her essay “Men explain things to me,” is a prevalent yet underestimated gendered phenomenon with serious implications and pernicious harms. Surprisingly, despite the systematic societal impact and recognition that it has, its philosophical analyses are scarce. The ones that do exist fail to address the question of gender construction in mansplaining, which is pivotal to the concept. For a phenomenon that is gendered at its core, this constitutes a critical research gap within the discourse.
The overarching concept for this paper is to first analyse the phenomenon of mansplaining; understand the roles of epistemic agents in the “gendered (dysfunctional) testimonial exchange,” the mechanisms involved, as well as the harms that follow, and later address the question of gender, which, as I want to prove, is a key to understanding mansplaining.
To provide a foundation for my exploration, I will analyse mansplaining through three philosophical frameworks: silencing, epistemic injustice, and gender metaphysics. The first one will provide me with a foundation, the second will elaborate on the harms, and, finally, gender metaphysics unveil the core of mansplaining. The exploration will lead me to the claim that “mansplaining is a way gender is constructed.”
Chair: Henrik Hörmann
Time: September 12th, 10:00 – 10:30
Location: SR 1.003
SOPhiA 2026 