Martha Alicia Trevino-Tarango

It is sometimes argued that there are pre-political, ‘natural’ characteristics that have a significant role in rendering political subjects, for instance that women are the subjects of feminism. These same arguments criticise transfeminism as a usurper of feminist priorities because it changes focus to the rights of groups whose members are not exclusively women. This essay challenges such criticism. It begins by defining transfeminism as a form of activism and an epistemological tool, in order to cogently address some of the views that oppose it. I then propose a way out of the conflict by showing how we can make better sense of transfeminism aided by Wittgenstein’s concept of forms of life, since both views contend that there are biological and environmental features that constitute the uniqueness as well as the diversity of the given human form of life, without implying that said diversity leads to relativism. The paper concludes that transfeminism, when conceptualised correctly, can indeed work with other feminisms and political movements in order to counter institutionalised and market-driven gender politics that only simulate to address feminist concerns. Key words: transfeminism, Wittgenstein, forms of life, Judith Butler, feminist subject.

This work analyses and defends Wittgenstein's definition of mathematical objectivity, looking particularly at his account of mathematical proofs, of what makes them normative, and what role mathematical and linguistic practices play in their establishment. It aims to provide a clearer view of Wittgenstein's idea that the objectivity of proofs is inextricably rooted in empirical regularities, detected within what he calls our 'form of life', and which are in turn constituted by both regularities in nature and regularities in human practices. To accomplish this, the thesis makes an exhaustive analysis of Wittgenstein distinction between proofs and experiments. Drawing from Wittgenstein's philosophy of language, this paper addresses important criticisms that have hindered a serious study of his remarks on mathematics, and vindicates his arguments as cogent, solid accounts of mathematical necessity and practice. This exploration will show that mathematical proofs do not have to be regarded as tools for the discovery of mathematical truths, of any sort, that depict mathematical facts, but can be correctly characterised as norms that produce new understanding, forming new concepts to deal with reality, and which ultimately affect the very limits of intelligibility, of what we can think, express and do. Thus, a philosophically relevant link between mathematical proofs and possibilities of action is set.