Annemarie Mol, Feminism, and Interdisciplinarity: Interdisciplinary feminist insights as resistance
Faculty Mentor
Jessica Willis
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Start Date
4-14-2026 12:00 PM
End Date
4-14-2026 12:20 PM
Location
PUB 319
Primary Discipline of Presentation
Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies
Abstract
In this paper I ask the question: How does one question interdisciplinarity as it exists within the structure of academia, so that it can be practiced thoroughly within feminist study? The book The Body Multiple: Ontology in Medical Practice by Annemarie Mol, exists within this struggle between disciplines, drawing from Mol’s life experience, anthropological work, and many disciplines to create new theories for the body in medicine. In this essay, I show how The Body Multiple exemplifies interdisciplinary feminism in practice. I argue that interdisciplinary feminism is, in its very nature, resistant to hegemonic academic structures. I also argue that it is necessary to practice both within and outside these structures in order to enact change. I look into Mol’s work, The Body Multiple, and identify ways in which Mol uses feminism and interdisciplinarity as tools in her text. I research feminist interdisciplinarity itself, to better understand how interdisciplinarity feminism is practiced by scholars. I also investigate the structure of interdisciplinary feminism to question the ways in which it can be used to subvert the traditional structures of academia. Finally, I explore how Mol’s academia relates itself to interdisciplinarity, using both The Body Multiple, and other works, to explore her specific interdisciplinary perspective.
Recommended Citation
Jensen, Abby, "Annemarie Mol, Feminism, and Interdisciplinarity: Interdisciplinary feminist insights as resistance" (2026). 2026 Symposium. 9.
https://dc.ewu.edu/srcw_2026/op_2026/o2_2026/9
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Annemarie Mol, Feminism, and Interdisciplinarity: Interdisciplinary feminist insights as resistance
PUB 319
In this paper I ask the question: How does one question interdisciplinarity as it exists within the structure of academia, so that it can be practiced thoroughly within feminist study? The book The Body Multiple: Ontology in Medical Practice by Annemarie Mol, exists within this struggle between disciplines, drawing from Mol’s life experience, anthropological work, and many disciplines to create new theories for the body in medicine. In this essay, I show how The Body Multiple exemplifies interdisciplinary feminism in practice. I argue that interdisciplinary feminism is, in its very nature, resistant to hegemonic academic structures. I also argue that it is necessary to practice both within and outside these structures in order to enact change. I look into Mol’s work, The Body Multiple, and identify ways in which Mol uses feminism and interdisciplinarity as tools in her text. I research feminist interdisciplinarity itself, to better understand how interdisciplinarity feminism is practiced by scholars. I also investigate the structure of interdisciplinary feminism to question the ways in which it can be used to subvert the traditional structures of academia. Finally, I explore how Mol’s academia relates itself to interdisciplinarity, using both The Body Multiple, and other works, to explore her specific interdisciplinary perspective.
