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Assignment 6

In her essay, “Eating the Other,” Bell Hooks examines the relationship between the whites and the Others. In this case, the Others are referred to as non-whites who differ from the whites in terms of race, ethnicity and skin color. Hooks first introduces the notion that the whites are seeking the Others to experience pleasure. Racial difference is looked upon in a positive light, because the whites are fantasizing that the Others are special in their own way and that the lives of Others are more lively, more exotic, and more exciting. The act of forming a relationship with the Others is seen as provocative, because there is the thrill of going outside the norm and doing something that is different. Hooks further argues that publicly desiring intimate contact with the Others is breaking the status quo in that it goes against white supremacy. However, one can also argue that at least a certain degree of white supremacy still exists. When college boys said that they want to sleep with as many racial girls as possible, their desire for pleasure is somewhat temporary in that they aren’t seeking for a long-term serious relationship. They are curious to step into this field of unique and different experience, yet are making light of it by treating their relationship with these women as something to exploit rather than treasure. Hooks also believes that these whites are like consumers who are looking to buy pleasure. Not much different from the system of slavery, the Others are still considered as products that can be manipulated into the dominance of whites. Just as black people were desired for productivity in labor, racial groups are being desired in anticipation of the pleasure that they can give. Furthermore, relationship with the Others is productive because there is an aspect of gaining power and conquering death. This occurs because racial groups are subject to pain and suffering due to a racist society. Therefore, incorporating blackness into a white person’s life, whether it be sleeping with black people or eating black food, is regarded as having embraced and overcome the feeling of death and despair they never had to experience. In such ways, white people seeks to gain pleasure and be empowered through their relationship with the Others.