Beyond the Nature/Culture Division. Building Complementary Knowledge on Disease

Abstract

The aim of the article is to present successful instances of building complementary knowledge on disease which go beyond the traditional division between natural and socio-cultural sciences. I argue that this is partially possible due to the changes in biological narratives and feminism’s attitude towards biology, with reciprocal references. First, I describe selected trends in the philosophy of biology which reflect changes in biological research towards more non-reductionist approaches. Then, I present some important aspects of the recent current in feminist studies called ‘new feminist materialism,’ and underline its clear attempt at combining research results from physics, biology, humanities, and social sciences. Finally, I present some main facets of studies on disease: in feminist reflection, Ludwik Fleck’s psycho-sociology of scientific knowledge, and in the medical humanities approach.