Feminist Curiosity in International Relations: Perspectives, Voices, and Reflections Beyond the Canon

Abstract

How does feminist curiosity deepen epistemological and methodological reflections in feminist IR studies so as to produce critically engaged research on women and gendered subjects? Departing from a philosophical discussion, I argue that feminist curiosity provides a critical tool to interrogate the meanings of who, where and how in feminist and gender research, thereby establishing epistemological and methodological directions based on the reflexive nature of feminisms. Furthermore, I present a bibliometric panorama of the recent feminist output in two Brazilian IR journals in order to assess the way their pages express feminist curiosity. I conclude that national feminist research takes a critical stance in the country vis-à-vis Euro-American literature, focusing epistemologically and thematically on approaches emerging from the Global South.