A Black Spinsters Book Review- Talking Back: Thinking Feminist, Thinking Black (1989)
These are just my opinions/interpretations. Potential for spoilers ahead.
Author(s): Bell Hooks
Genre(s): Feminist-theory, Black intersectional feminism, Non-fiction
Reading Method: Audiobook
Key Points (if applicable):
(1) The use of voice as a tool for oppression that can be used as a tool for resistance
(2) How oppression intersects between race, sex, class to impact people in their daily lives such as education, relationship building, and self-esteem
My Thoughts/Comments: Another great read and a wonderful follow up to her first book Ain’t I A Woman. This hones in on many of its predecessors themes (intersectional feminism, challenges of patriarchy, legacies of racism against and within black societies) with a focus on educational politics, voice, women’s essays, and critical feminist thinking to push back against intersecting systems of oppression. I love how she talks about the use of voice as a tool both for and against oppression, in different places such as education, work, and intimate relationships. While her first book spoke to some personal experiences with a lot of historical contexts, this book considers them with a heavier focus on how sexism reproduces harmful narratives that women often become too accustomed to to critically question in their daily lives. Also, I appreciate that she questions how feminist literature is often pushed to focus solely on academia, as personal theory/experience is wrongly devalued as a useful source of understanding in women’s studies.
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