Justice and Knowledge: Do the Oppressed Know Something that Others Don’t?



Overview

Justice has traditionally been assumed to be about “who gets what resources.” However, are there also injustices when it comes to who gets heard and who is ignored? This is the claim that some people are victims of an injustice relating to knowledge—an epistemic injustice. Can people really be treated unjustly when it comes to knowledge?

Authors such as Miranda Fricker have differentiated several different types of injustice of this kind. One is testimonial injustice, when people’s statements are not given appropriate credibility due to the prejudice of the hearers. Another is that people are not given the support to be able to make sense of injustices that are done to them. A third is that people are silenced or “gaslit” in some way, told that their interpretation of events is incorrect.

In this short course we will consider the proposed different types of epistemic injustice and how this has and may continue to affect various groups. 

Programme details

Course starts: 22st Jan 2025

Week 1: What are injustice and oppression?

Week 2: Whose word counts? (On testimonial injustice).

Week 3: Feminism and 'Me Too'. 

Week 4: Are some people silenced?

Week 5: Du Bois on double consciousness.

Week 6: Race and ‘white ignorance’.

Week 7: Intersectionality.

Week 8: Disability and medicine.

Week 9: Sexuality and gender. 

Week 10: Who is responsible for fixing the issue?

Certification

To complete the course and receive a certificate, you will be required to attend at least 80% of the classes on the course and pass your final assignment. Upon successful completion, you will receive a link to download a University of Oxford digital certificate. Information on how to access this digital certificate will be emailed to you after the end of the course. The certificate will show your name, the course title and the dates of the course you attended. You will be able to download your certificate or share it on social media if you choose to do so.

Fees

Description Costs
Course Fee £285.00
Take this course for CATS points £30.00

Funding

If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:

Concessionary fees for short courses

Tutor

Dr Doug Bamford

Doug Bamford teaches courses in philosophy and political economy at OUDCE. His main interest is in political philosophy and its application to public policy. He obtained his PhD in 2013 and became an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) in 2023. He is author of Rethinking Taxation (Searching Finance, 2014) and several papers (including articles in the Journal of Applied Philosophy, Moral Philosophy and Politics, Problema, and Think). He blogs at Doug Bamford's Tax Appeal.

Course aims

  • To introduce students to the issue of epistemic injustice, and how it might apply to various groups.
  • To give students good knowledge and understanding of key texts on the subject of epistemic injustice.
  • To give students practice in the analysis and critical assessment of arguments.

Course objectives:

  • Gain an understanding of the ethical issues relating to epistemic justice.
  • Understand the philosophical and ethical issues relating to epistemic justice.
  • Present and defend their own views on these issues.

Teaching methods

Students will be asked to read one or two relevant texts each week before class. Classroom sessions will consist of a mixture of activities including active lecturing, small group discussion and open debate.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will be expected to:

  • explain different kinds of epistemic injustice;
  • apply epistemic injustice to various kinds of scenarios;
  • defend their own view on epistemic injustice.

Assessment methods

Coursework will consist of either one essay of 1500 words or two or three smaller essays totalling this amount.

Coursework is an integral part of all weekly classes and everyone enrolled will be expected to do coursework in order to benefit fully from the course. Only those who have registered for credit will be awarded CATS points for completing work to the required standard.

Students must submit a completed Declaration of Authorship form at the end of term when submitting your final piece of work. CATS points cannot be awarded without the aforementioned form - Declaration of Authorship form

Application

To earn credit (CATS points) for your course you will need to register and pay an additional £30 fee per course. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online.

Please use the 'Book' or 'Apply' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an Enrolment Form (Word) or Enrolment Form (Pdf)

Level and demands

The Department's Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, i.e. first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.

Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS)

To earn credit (CATS points) you will need to register and pay an additional £30 fee per course. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online. Students who register for CATS points will receive a Record of CATS points on successful completion of their course assessment.

Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process can either register for CATS points prior to the start of their course or retrospectively from the January 1st after the current full academic year has been completed. If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.

Terms & conditions for applicants and students

Information on financial support