A feminine and poststructural extension of cosmopolitan ethics in music education

Abstract

The interconnected nature of 21st-century life demands that music educators and students consider those beyond their immediate communities in their ethical deliberations. While Appiah’s cosmopolitan ethical principles of universal concern and respect for legitimate difference may serve as a starting point for global ethical considerations in music education, they are potentially problematic for three reasons: their abstract nature can lead to the dehumanization of those about whom one claims concern; they can reinforce existing hegemonic divides between “legitimate” and “deviant” music-making; and they can lead to fixed understandings of practices and people. A feminine and poststructural extension of cosmopolitan ethics may assist music educators and students in addressing these issues. First, through a synthesis of the principle of universal concern and Noddings’ feminine ethics, music educators and students can resist dehumanizing others by aiming to “care for” and “care with” them. Second, teachers and students can use Foucault’s writings to consider how power-laden, socio-historical factors produce conceptions of legitimacy. Finally, drawing inspiration from Deleuzian ethical writings, music educators and students can challenge stagnant worldviews by promoting “legitimate differing” and imagining creative, evolving ethical futures.