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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Overall, what does the author think about the effects of the feminist movement?

2. How does the author view the concept of personal freedom?

3. What general statement does the author make about men that may seem to contradict her other claims?

4. In Chapter 1, the author states that feminist theory and the feminist movement were originally shaped by which type of people?

5. What is the social and racial dynamic described by the author at the beginning of the Preface to the first edition of the book?

Short Essay Questions

1. Are sexual liberty and "ending sexual oppression" the same thing for the author?

2. From the author's perspective, is theory related to experience in her discussion in Chapter One?

3. What was the experience of many non-white and lower class women working outside the home?

4. In the author's view, is idealism enough to enact needed changes?

5. How does the author feel about including men in the feminist movement?

6. In Chapter Four, does the author agree with early feminist definitions of sisterhood?

7. What reasons does the author give for people finding themselves at the center of society?

8. What does the author say about feminist writer Betty Friedan's book The Feminine Mystique?

9. How are traditional patriarchal concepts of gender related to violence against women?

10. What can alternative models of power accomplish, according to the author?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Essay on Ch. 6: Traditional and alternative models of power.

In Ch. 6 the author elaborates on traditional and alternative models of power and their relationship to women and the feminist movement. Discuss the central points of her analysis.

1) First, provide a brief definition of traditional and alternative models of power.

2) Next, discuss how and why early feminists understood and reacted to power.

3) Follow with a discussion of the author's observation about these feminists' ambivalent relationship to male-defined models of power.

4) Finally discuss how and why the author sees women of color and working class white women as examples of alternative models of power.

5) How do you view her assessment?

Essay Topic 2

Essay on Ch. 10: Motherhood.

In Ch. 10, the author discusses views on motherhood, both feminist and traditional.

1) Describe traditional beliefs about motherhood mentioned by the author.

2) Next, describe and discuss early feminist reactions to motherhood.

3) Do early feminist beliefs and reactions concerning motherhood challenge and change, or simply reject traditional beliefs?

Essay Topic 3

Essay on the two Prefaces: Purpose and reception of author's work.

In the Prefaces to the first and second editions of Feminist Theory From Margin to Center by bell hooks, the author discusses the reasons for her work and how its reception has evolved.

1) Discuss the author's primary reasons for writing the book. Why is a perspective from the margins important? How might a person from the margins see things differently?

2) Next, discuss the book's initial reception and the possible reasons for it.

3) Has the attitude towards analyses of gender, race, and class changed within the feminist movement? Why and how?

(see the answer keys)

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