Katie Goss“Plasticité Feminine: Malabou’s ‘Minimal Concept of Woman’ and Contemporary Science/Fictions”Email: k.e.goss@qmul.ac.ukProfileSupervisionProfileMy interests lie in contemporary feminist thought and culture, particularly emerging forms of intersection between the arts and sciences to represent and respond to conditions of the twenty-first century, including new bioethical concerns, expansive digital technologies and ecological crisis. My PhD project focuses on the concept of “plasticity” and its potential alliance with feminism, as articulated in the work of philosopher Catherine Malabou. Provisionally entitled “Plasticité Feminine: Malabou’s ‘Minimal Concept of Woman’ and Contemporary Science/Fictions” I will explore Malabou’s philosophical intervention in traditions of feminist theory and how her proposition of a ‘minimal concept of woman’ is tied to the intrinsic capacity for transformation seen in neuro-, epigenetic and biochemical sciences. This provides a new means by which to understand emergent trends in women’s artistic production and new ways of thinking about material embodiment, identity and the capacity for these to change. This research is fundamentally interdisciplinary, drawing upon the fields of feminism and queer theory, continental philosophy, psychoanalysis and the medical humanities. I hold a BA in English Literature (QMUL) and an MA in Critical Methodologies (KCL). My PhD research is funded by a Queen Mary Postgraduate Research Studentship.ResearchSupervision Dr Molly Macdonald and Dr Sam McBean