Black Feminist Thought Knowledge Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment Routledge Classics

Black Feminist Thought Knowledge Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment Routledge Classics

In spite of the double burden of racial and gender discrimination, African-American women have developed a rich intellectual tradition that is not widely known. In Black Feminist Thought, originally published in 1990, Patricia Hill Collins set out to explore the words and ideas of Black feminist intellectuals and writers, both within the academy and without. Here Collins provides an interpretive framework for the work of such prominent Black feminist thinkers as Angela Davis, bell hooks, Alice Walker, and Audre Lorde. Drawing from fiction, poetry, music and oral history, the result is a superbly crafted and revolutionary book that provided the first synthetic overview of Black feminist thought and its canon.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars A dense but accessible read
This book is dense with thoughts and ideas, written in a looping structure that weaves the vast diversity of black women's voices into a colorful tapestry of intricate detail and contradiction. This is its strength, and its weakness. Collins specifically avoids exclusivity, and this means she includes a few… well, "out there" thoughts from others. Most notably, she cites Tuan on p 139 who asserts that people go to zoos to see monkeys copulate. But this is an extreme, and very rare. More commonly, she grounds these diverse thoughts in real-world experiences. Most impressively, she makes the case that intellectual thought is not limited to the academy, but must include all those who think seriously about their lives. This means that groups – such as Black women – who have been historically excluded from the academy can rediscover their own intellectual traditions outside of academia, and tie them all together. I am glad that I read this book. It has many perspectives I simply was not aware of before I opened it. While I may not agree with all of Collins' assertions, I definitely respect them. It is a dense book, but the very structure of it makes it accessible through its layering technique. Further, Collins writes in a unadorned style that makes absorbing unfamiliar viewpoints all the easier.

5 Stars Great Book for All People
I'm a gay white male and I loved this book! Collins does an amazing job presenting her compelling thesis, and I continue to thank Sociology in general for being the most daring, critical-thinking academic discipline ever. It's no surprise sociologists like Collins dare to speak out on gay rights issues (see her section on homophobia/heterosexism) – sociology is the only area of thought that consistently questions the status quo. In a day in age where so many (though by no means all!) African-American (heterosexuals) are horribly anti-gay and increasingly pro-greed/pro-capitalism, Collins stands out as a heroine for all peoples. I am still waiting for an openly gay hip-hop artist!! How cool would that be? I recommend this book to absolutely anyone. Five stars!

4 Stars feminist thought and female chauvinist pigs
The book were in excellent condition and did not take long to arrive at home earlier than expected.

3 Stars It was for a class…
I did not actually get to read the whole book, my teacher did not really stress reading this so I unfortunately cannot write and honest review. Sorry.

5 Stars a great introduction to Black Feminist literature…..
I knew little about the Black Feminist movement, when I first read this book over four years ago. It was part of a list of required books for a Black and Indigenous women's course through the school of Women's Studies. This school of thought has more involved in it than meets the eye. For starters, according to the very compelling and highly researched studies of Patricia Hill Collins, it came about in the face of great discrimination against, not only, African-Americans and women, but especially African-American women. They were looked down upon and objectified, due to their race, the means in which many African-Americans were forceably brought to the United States, as slaves (fodder for wealthy, white slave owners in their fields and in their children's nurseries, as well as their kitchens).

What works so well in its book is the acute insight and detail that Collins brings to her body of work. This book is really beautifully put together, and we get a sense of the evolution of Black Feminist Thought, through time. It's unbelievable to me that not more people have heard of this book, and I really think a formal movement needs to be started in schools throughout the country, to bring interracial consciousness to the masses, through literature. Read this book today.

Buy/More Info

Sphere: Related Content

Related posts:

1. The Black Church in the African American Experience
2. Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement – A Radical Democratic Vision – Gender and American Culture
3. The Veil And The Male Elite – A Feminist Interpretation Of Womens Rights In Islam
4. The Veil And The Male Elite — A Feminist Interpretation Of Women's Rights In Islam
5. Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White Thoughts on Religion Morality and Politics
6. Transcending the Levels of Consciousness
7. Jesus: A Radical Feminist
8. Black Children Are An Endangered Species
9. The 21 Day Consciousness Cleanse – A Breakthrough Program for Connecting with Your Souls Deepest Purpose
10. Black Elk Speaks – Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Leave a Reply

Click here to cancel reply.

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

IMPORTANT NOTE: We welcome and encourage comments. However, we are receiving many 'junk comments' from people looking for back links. As of noon, November 16, 2009, comment submission authors must use a name. For example, names such as 'Payday Loans' or 'Home Accessories' will be deleted. You may continue to link to your website, but we want names (pen names are all right). Additionally, only substantive comments that have to do with the content of the article will be accepted. Comments such as 'Nice post, thanks,' will be deleted. Comments that link to pornographic or hate sites will also be deleted.

Website

By submitting a comment here you grant this site a perpetual license to reproduce your words and name/web site in attribution. While we offer immediate approval of comments that are not screened as spam, we reserve the right to delete your comment pursuant to the site's terms, conditions and policies. GOD DISCUSSION RESERVES THE RIGHT TO DELETE OR EDIT COMMENTS FOR ANY REASON, WITHOUT NOTICE, including without limitation grammar errors, "trolling" and spamming.

Security Code: