Introduction For several years now, Catharine MacKinnon has impressed and inspired us in that she has consistently and eloquently articulated much of what we felt and feared: that the condition of women in North American society is intolerable; that the state, because of its acts and omissions, is complicitous in the enforced inequality of women; and that law, more often than not, has been part of the problem rather than part of the solution. However, despite our broad agreement with the general direction of MacKinnon's analysis throughout this period, we each have had, in our own different ways, a sense of discomfort, an inchoate feeling that something was amiss. Yet, we found it difficult to focus and express this dis-ease. Then, as we, from our diverse perspectives, discussed MacKinnon's most recent book, Toward A Feminist Theory of the State (1) we began to come to terms with our disquiet, to identify, define and delineate our concerns. The result of these conversations is this collaborative essay which, in the words of Cornell West and bell hooks, aspires to be a "critical affirmation" (2) of MacKinnon's enterprise.
