From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Jesse Larsen
In her introduction, Patricia Hill Collins states that her work is informed by the totality of her experience as the daughter of working-class parents, her education as a sociologist and educator, and her daily "non-scholarly activities" as wife, mother, community activist, sister, and friend. Black Feminist Thought is the first history and analysis of "Black women's ideas" told in a voice that is "both individual and collective, personal and political, one reflecting the intersection of my unique biography with the larger meaning of my historical times." In it we discover new meanings for selected and neglected traditional female themes like gossip, hair, TV, movies, food, and clothing; get a fresh look at where and how knowledge is produced; learn about self-definition and about kitchens, factories, and neighborhoods as "alternative locations for intellectual work." The implications of her chapters, "The Ethic of Caring," "The Ethic of Personal Accountability," and "Reconceptualizing Race, Class, and Gender as Interlocking Systems of Oppression," are enormous and compelling. For readers interested in the sources and definitions of knowledge - especially those whose history and intellectual tradition has been lost, denied, or denigrated - Black Feminist Thought is one of the most inspiring, exciting, and valuable books you'll ever read. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins explores the words and ideas of Black feminist intellectuals as well as those African-American women outside academe. She not only provides an interpretive framework for the work of such prominent Black feminist

thinkers as Angela Davis, Alice Walker, and Audre Lorde, but she shows the importance of self-defined knowledge for group empowerment. In the tenth anniversary edition of this award-winning work, Patricia Hill Collins expands the basic arguments of the first edition by adding several

important new themes. A new discussion of heterosexism as a system of power, an expanded treatment of images of Black womanhood, U.S. Black feminism's connections to Black Diasporic feminisms, and more attention to the importance of social class and nationalism all appear in the new

edition. In addition, the new edition includes recent developments in black cultural studies, especially black popular culture, as well as recent events and trends such as the Anita Hill hearings and the backlash against affirmative action.

exploration of a multiplicity of responses. (Women's Review of Books)

SYNOPSIS