bell hooks: All about Love , new visions
This book is an interrogation and investigation of Love; what do mean when we talk about Love? From a starting point of hooks own experience growing up, and on into adult relationships, she moves on to question what messages we receive from society, culture and mass media and how this has influenced how we feel about Love; what does it mean to us, how does it show up in our lives, how can we be actively loving, not only to others but also to ourselves
“To teach in a manner that respects and cares for the souls of our students is essential if we are to provide the necessary conditions where learning can most deeply and intimately begin” bell hooks (2014)
I’m thinking about what Love means in the educational/university context; it feels that it is dangerous to talk about Love in regards to students, probably because of the narrow and limiting definitions that prevail in society that can often point to Romantic love
I feel an important aspect of student education is Pastoral Care and how we may support students and their individual approaches to their own ‘wellness’, or the daily lived experience of being Loving towards oneself. It is hugely important for students to engage in their own self care, especially as the implications of bad mental health also impact their studies and overall experience of their time at University. I feel as their tutors/lecturers we can easily have an influence in supporting students by introducing them to quick and simple self care techniques, enabling them to be more present in their classes and studies and enable them to have practical resources to help with anxiety, for instance. These will not only help them whilst at University but also gives them support skills as they move into the wider world.
References
hooks, bell (2018). All about Love: New Visions. New York: Harper Perennial.
Universities UK. (n.d.).
hooks, bell (2014). Teaching to Transgress. pg14, Routlidge
Stepchange: mentally healthy universities. [online] Available at: https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and-research/publications/stepchange-mentally-healthy-universities.