On The Will To Change by Bell Hooks

On The Will to Change by Bell Hooks published in 2005:

Could more empathy, responsibility, and will to change help cure our cultural ailments? 

Bell Hooks was a humanities professor who taught courses in English, Afro-American, and Women’s studies. The Will to Change is full of experiences and insights that vividly depict a cultural sickness. Hooks illustrates male and female contributions to a culture of fear, anger, and trauma that disproportionately distributes privileges and consequences. 

Hooks distinguishes between contemporary or reformed feminism and feminism. She contrasts domination with partnership, shame with self-esteem, fear with courage, and rage with nonviolence as she describes a culture insistent on male domination. Hooks refers to this zeitgeist as a social disease called patriarchy. So, if we live in an “imperialist white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy”, how do we change it?

Hooks’ personal experiences are powerful examples of male and female contributions to a domineering and power-hungry culture. She encourages empathy in men and women, but calls males to assume responsibility and the will to change. What happens when rage, fear, and shame go quiet? What happens when people feel heard?

Could more empathy, responsibility, and will to change help cure our cultural ailments? 

Sources:

Hooks, B. (2004). The will to change: men, masculinity, and love. New York, Atria Books.