BELL HOOKS ESSAY/EXAM Flashcards
Outline Paragraph 1 - intersectionality
- interconnectedness of sex, race and class
- Ain’t I a Woman (1981) - “the struggle to end racism and the struggle to end sexism were naturally intertwined”
- Crenshaw (1989) - gender and race aren’t mutually exclusive
- General Motors Corporation - lack of acknowledgement of interconnectivity: made them choose an agenda - this shows the the pressure put on female POC to choose one major oppressive force, signalling society’s disregard for their wellbeing
- intersectionality recognises the complexities of society and has broadened feminism to be more inclusive
Outline Paragraph 2 - second wave
- hooks’ critique of liberal second wave feminism (Friedan and The Feminine Mystique) - views women as homogenous group
- silent majority aren’t liberated - presumed whiteness and middle class label exhibits disregard for marginalised and hooks questions who will take over from them when they are liberated from the home
Outline Paragraph 3 - family
- the household/family indicates failure to combine sexism and racism
- home is oppressive for white, middle class women
- one of the least oppressive institutions for black women (racism is the more oppressive structure)
Outline Paragraph 4 -slavery
- impact of slavery: gendered division of labour (women exploited sexually as well as within the house and fields)
- hooks’ views around the gendered DOL are critiqued by Smith (1983): In hooks’ argument for the unfair treatment of black women, she writes as through black men weren’t stripped of their masculinity, and she thus ignores “power and autonomy as essential components of masculinity”
- slavery has shaped the experiences of black people
- New Femininities (Gill and Scharff, 2011) - discuss the presumed whiteness of the first lady - Michelle Obama seen as ‘angry black woman’ stereotype - hooks argues she failed to utilise her power to change perceptions of black women (e.g western hairstyles)
- Critique: hooks fails to acknowledge other ethnic minorities (such as Asians or mixed race) - e.g Meghan Markle - daily male stereotype / struggle of non binary identity/ role model as royal
Outline Paragraph 5 - representations
- representations in the media
- film: feminist film theory (e.g Mulvey) acknowledges objectification of females (but only white females) - oppositional gaze developed (commodification- removal of historical context)
- stuart hall: makes space for analysis of media which addresses race and representation
- magazines: Johnson (2015) - this can be linked to Beyonce: hooks is critical of her for her ‘whiteness’ - calls her a ‘terrorist’
- Davidson (2014) - criticises hooks for this use of language - damaging and harmful (perpetuates stereotype of militant feminists)
- Mock (2016) our presentations are not measurements of our credibility
Outline Paragraph 6 - men
- mixed definitions of feminism - feminism is for everybody (2000) puts forward “a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression”
- men and women should work together to end this exploitation and it must be recognised that men (especially working class and black men) are oppressed to - e.g male mental health (shows how not all men are privileged) and police brutality
- “so many men, especially black men, do not possess actual power”
When was From Margin to Centre published?
1984
When was Feminism is for everybody published?
2000
Who critiques hooks for being too harsh on men?
Smith (1983)
Who wrote New Femininities?
Gill and Scharff (2011)
What did Johnson (2015) study?
Magazine representations of women of colour - discovered they were masked by whiteness
Evaluation of Intersectionality
intersectionality recognises the complexities of society and has broadened feminism to be more inclusive
What did Mock (2016) argue?
Our presentations are not measurements of our credibility
What did Davidson (2014) argue?
criticises hooks for this use of language - damaging and harmful (perpetuates stereotype of militant feminists)
Outline the introduction
- interconnectivity
- drawing on critique of Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique
- discusses slavery: impacted lives of black people
- media representations
- end by acknowledging that men are oppressed
