Analysis Of The Poem Aint I A Woman - 1079 Words

Alonia Lewis Canonical Text Prof. Barnes March 16, 2016 In 1992, Bell Hooks published â€Å"Aint I a Woman† after working on it for several years. â€Å"Aint I a Woman† is a book detailing the lives of Black women in America from Slavery to the present and their relation to feminism. Hooks felt that there was an absence of books about the African American woman that were available. While there were books about individual African American women and their experiences in the oppressive American system, she believed that those women’s stories could not be generalized for all African American women. It was necessary to have a book at this time that acknowledged not black women and the two types of oppressions they experienced that formed their present status in America. Bell was encouraged by her peers to write this well needed book. She was especially motivated by the views that others had toward black women at the time: â€Å"I can remember a dinner where I talked about the book and one person, in a big booming voice choking with laughter exclaimed, ‘what is there to be said about black women!† I had written†¦ the existence of black women was often forgotten, that we were often ignored or dismissed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Hooks). One of the most important ideas that Bell expresses in â€Å"Aint I a Woman† is double jeopardy. Black women have been silenced by two kinds of oppression: racism and sexism (Hooks 1). The racist aspect comes from the white community, while the sexist aspect comes from the African American