POLITICAL OBLIGATION, FREEDOM AND FEMINISM

How should feminist theorists approach the analysis of political oblig ation and freedom? In her article in the December 1989 issue of this R eview, Nancy Hirschmann proposed a fundamental reconstruction of these concepts. Carole Pateman agrees that liberal obligation theory inadeq uately treats the coercion of women and other groups under the guise o f voluntary obligations. But she argues that Hirschmann goes too far, particularly in rejecting the priority of freedom. Hirschmann explicat es their disagreements and her approach.