ABSTRACT
Teasing out the paradox surrounding speaker vulnerability in philosophy is part of the author task today; the other part is "arguing" that mutual vulnerability in philosophical relations is what should characterize collective work in philosophy – or, at least, in feminist philosophy. The vulnerability of a (woman) speaker follows from her dependence upon an audience; if she is to be heard, her dependence requires an audience who is both willing and capable of hearing her as a speaker and a knower. The American feminist philosopher Nacy Tuana defines; ''wilful ignorance'' as a systematic process of self-deception, a wilful embrace of ignorance that infects those who are in positions of privilege, an active ignoring of the oppression of others and one’s role in that exploitation. In the end, the author must admit that there is nothing to compel the philosopher to accept her challenge — to recognize their vulnerability in philosophical relations.
