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Description: |
bell hooks published her landmark book Ain’t I a Woman in 1981, and with it, she became one of the most prominent voices to emerge from the Black feminist movement. hooks challenged intersecting oppressions throughout her versatile canon. She authored more than two dozen books with topics ranging from classism to education, history, movies, literature, and love. hooks gravitated towards popular culture because she wanted to connect with larger audiences while still maintaining her critical voice. Scholars and readers are now starting to assess this prolific writer’s legacy after hooks died in 2021. In this course, we will read hooks's work as a lens for examining larger themes within Black women’s intellectual history. We will also explore nineteenth- and twentieth-century Black women writers—hooks’s peers and foremothers—as we ask questions about hooks's intellectual lineage, revolutionary vision, populist approach, and lasting legacy. |