Alia Al-Saji

Alia Al-Saji
InstitutionsMcGill University, Emory University
Main interests
Feminist Phenomenology

Alia Al-Saji is James McGill Professor of Philosophy at McGill University.[1] Her work focuses on bringing 20th century phenomenology and French philosophy into dialogue with critical race and feminist theories.[1] Al-Saji believes that feminist phenomenology must take an intersectional approach to its work, one that accounts for the fact that gender cannot be treated in a vacuum apart from other axes of oppression.[2]

Education and career

Al-Saji received a bachelor's degree from McMaster University in 1993, a master's degree in philosophy from KU Leuven in 1995, and a doctorate in philosophy from Emory University in 2002.[1] After receiving her doctorate, Al-Saji accepted a teaching position at McGill University, an institution she is still at.[1] In her time at McGill (and previously, as a graduate student,) Al-Saji published a number of papers in peer-reviewed journals.[1] She is also working on a manuscript, tentatively titled The Time of Difference: Thinking memory, perception and ethics with Bergson and Merleau-Ponty.[1]

Al-Saji is the editor of the feminist philosophy section of the journal Philosophy Compass.[3] She is a co-editor of the Symposia on Gender, Race and Philosophy. Al-Saji has held a number of fellowships, including one at the Institute of Advanced Study at Durham University in 2012, where she carried out research related to the theme of time,[4] and one at The Camargo Foundation in Cassis, France.[5]

Research areas

Much of Al-Saji's work has represented an effort to forge links between 20th century phenomenology and French philosophy and critical race and feminist theories.[1] A significant theme of her work has been the question of time.[4] Al-Saji's research has two distinct tracks: the first looks at questions of embodiment, memory, and intersubjectivity, and the second attempts to develop a phenomenology of "cultural racism," especially through feminist analysis of the depiction of Muslim women in modern western contexts.[4][6] Al-Saji's work has touched upon the work of many scholars before her, including Henri Bergson,[7][8] Edmund Husserl,[1] Maurice Merleau-Ponty,[1] Jean Paul Sartre,[1] and many others, although her work has primarily focused on Bergson and Merleau-Ponty.[1][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Alia Al-Saji". McGill University. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  2. ^ Ryman, Emma (10 June 2013). "Feminist Phenomenology, Race, and Perception: An Interview with Alia Al-Saji". Rotman Institute of Philosophy.
  3. ^ "New Feminist Philosophy Section for Philosophy Compass". Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  4. ^ a b c "Institute of Advanced Study : Professor Alia Al-Saji – Durham University". Durham University. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  5. ^ "The Camargo Foundation : Fellow Project details". The Camargo Foundation. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  6. ^ Sheth, Falguni A. (2013). "Interstitiality: Making Space for Migration, Diaspora, and Racial Complexity". Hypatia. 29: 75–93. doi:10.1111/hypa.12075. ISSN 0887-5367. S2CID 145054626.
  7. ^ Widder, Nathan (2008). Reflections on time and politics. University Park, Pa.: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 978-0271033945.
  8. ^ Lefebvre, Alexandre (2014). "Bergson and Phenomenology (Review)". Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews.
  9. ^ Burke, Megan (Summer 2013). "Anonymous Temporality and Gender: Rereading Merleau-Ponty". PhiloSOPHIA. 3 (2).