Response to Bell Hooks
Love vs. Punishment
In the article “Justice: Childhood Love Lessons” bell hooks claims that “there is nothing that creates more confusion about love in the minds and hearts of children than unkind or cruel punishment” (hooks 27). In other words punishment of any kind, let it be pinching, flicking or spanking will result in disorientation in a child’s mind. This statement is true to some people, false to others, but overall hooks tends to be bias in her argument. She doesn’t explore the different variations of physical punishment and how these punishments affect the child’s thought about love. There are many different types of punishment out there in this cruel world, but not all of them can disorientate a child’s mind or heart about love.
Simple physical punishments; such as pinching, flicking, and spanking, are carried out on us at a very young age, and all throughout life. Our parents are here to discipline us, to teach us the difference of right and wrong. When we first misbehave, our parents might tell us to “knock it off” or “stop” and they may raise their voice when asserting these commands. We sometimes stop when told to, but sometimes we ignore their commands and keep misbehaving repeatedly. This is where physical punishment comes into play. A form of physical punishment would and will be carried out on us. At first it may be a simple punishment, but gradually the punishments intensify. Once a punishment has been carried out, many of us become cloaked in fear of punishment and from this fear we learn not to do that mistake again. Simple punishment is used for the good of children and to discipline them, “Dr. David Safir, father of five and grandfather of five, CNN asked him to talk to us about his views on spanking. He said he was spanked as a child, spanked his own children when necessary and believes the occasional use of physical punishment -- not abuse -- can be an effective tool for parents” (Zeidler) If these simple punishments are executed out
In the article “Justice: Childhood Love Lessons” bell hooks claims that “there is nothing that creates more confusion about love in the minds and hearts of children than unkind or cruel punishment” (hooks 27). In other words punishment of any kind, let it be pinching, flicking or spanking will result in disorientation in a child’s mind. This statement is true to some people, false to others, but overall hooks tends to be bias in her argument. She doesn’t explore the different variations of physical punishment and how these punishments affect the child’s thought about love. There are many different types of punishment out there in this cruel world, but not all of them can disorientate a child’s mind or heart about love.
Simple physical punishments; such as pinching, flicking, and spanking, are carried out on us at a very young age, and all throughout life. Our parents are here to discipline us, to teach us the difference of right and wrong. When we first misbehave, our parents might tell us to “knock it off” or “stop” and they may raise their voice when asserting these commands. We sometimes stop when told to, but sometimes we ignore their commands and keep misbehaving repeatedly. This is where physical punishment comes into play. A form of physical punishment would and will be carried out on us. At first it may be a simple punishment, but gradually the punishments intensify. Once a punishment has been carried out, many of us become cloaked in fear of punishment and from this fear we learn not to do that mistake again. Simple punishment is used for the good of children and to discipline them, “Dr. David Safir, father of five and grandfather of five, CNN asked him to talk to us about his views on spanking. He said he was spanked as a child, spanked his own children when necessary and believes the occasional use of physical punishment -- not abuse -- can be an effective tool for parents” (Zeidler) If these simple punishments are executed out
Cited: 1. hooks, bell. "Justice: Childhood Love Lessons." All About Love: New Visions. New York: HarperCollins, 2000. 17-80. Print. 2. Zeidler, Sari . "To spank or not to spank, where do you draw the line?." CNN. CNN, 08 Jul 2012. Web. 1 Mar 2013.