Bell Hooks

In "The Oppositional Gaze," Bell Hooks frames gender in terms of power. Gender is one aspect of social hierarchy, and represents the social construction of power. The act of gazing, looking someone in the eye, or staring, likewise carries important connotations of power. Culturally specific, the norms regarding gazing determine norms related to relational power. Looking intently at someone is construed as brash, confident, and assertive. Therefore, persons with a low social status, such as children, women, and blacks, are told not to stare. Bell Hooks subverts gender and race disparities by owning her gaze.

Hooks also extends the concept of gazing to other forms of visual representations. Gazing has a political dimension, and that dimension can be seen in the rendition of blacks in the white dominant culture. People in power have entitled themselves to represent blacks, and women, as they see fit. Thus, to watch white...
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