Marilyn Friedman

Marilyn Ann Friedman (born April 7, 1945) is an American philosopher. She holds the W. Alton Jones Chair of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University. Friedman received her A.B. in political science from Washington University in St. Louis in 1967. She moved to Canada in 1968 and earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Western Ontario in 1974. Her academic career began at Denison University in 1973, and she has since taught at various institutions, including the University of Western Ontario, Bowling Green State University, Purdue University, and Washington University in St. Louis. By the mid-1980s, autonomy became her primary academic focus. Friedman challenged the view that autonomy was exclusively a male concept, arguing for its interpretation as self-determination without necessarily implying masculine associations. She also examines the influence of close relationships, care ethics, partiality, impartiality, gender identity, and multicultural education. Friedman gained tenure in 1993 and joined Vanderbilt University in 2009, specializing in social and political philosophy, ethics, and feminist theory. Her notable works include "What Are Friends For?" (1993) and "Autonomy, Gender, Politics" (2003). Her fields of special interest include female terrorists, women's rights, and cultural diversity.