Carol Gilligan further concludes her article by quoting Virginia Woolf: .
"It is obvious," Virginia Woolf says, "that the values of women differ very often from the values which have been made by the other sex." Yet she adds it is masculine values that prevail." .
Woolf's statement tends to support hooks theory that America is a sexist society valuing the opinion of men over women. However, again, it speaks to a different era, as Woolf made this statement in 1929. Yet, today America is still typically viewed as a patriarchal society. However, I would guess, due to the feminist movement there are numerous households within our society that wouldn't define themselves as patriarchal. So again, I must stress that these are elements that characterize our society, but they are not definitions set in stone. .
Even in the plight of feminism, as hooks points out, the experience of white women is far different from that of the black women and therefore perspectives change. Coming from the perspective of a black male, I have given more thought to racism than I have to sexism. Not to suggest that I have never been the target of sexism, but that it occurs less frequently in my experience than racism does. Although racism is a real thing, unlike hooks, I would not limit American society by defining it as a racist, sexist, and capitalistic society. It is true that Racism, sexism and capitalism are all elements of the American society, but so are democratic republic, civil liberties, as well as freedom. A freedom, which hooks clearly exercised her in her essay as she expresses her controversial ideas publicly, where in many societies she would not have the freedom to do so. As a black man, I would never attempt to disregard racism, but I believe racism is a point to move from and I don't believe we can do that, if we use it as a point to define ourselves as hooks attempts to do. I understand hooks perspective and I am enlightened by it as well, especially regarding her views on sexism and the oppressed status of black women.
