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Who really said it

The crisis facing men is not the crisis of masculinity, it is the crisis of patriarchal masculinity

Written by bell hooks
Attribution status: Verified Reuse status: In copyright

bell hooks writes this in The Will to Change (2004), Chapter 2: Understanding Patriarchy. The attribution concerns a published argument, not an independently dated speech.

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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“The crisis facing men is not the crisis of masculinity, it is the crisis of patriarchal masculinity” bell hooks, The Will to Change (2004), Chapter 2: Understanding Patriarchy. Exact published wording.

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Work
The Will to Change
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2004 English text
Location
Chapter 2: Understanding Patriarchy

The crisis facing men is not the crisis of masculinity

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Context

Why it mattered

hooks separates masculinity from a social order built on domination. In this chapter she argues that naming patriarchy precisely can make criticism less threatening to men and open possibilities for emotional connection and change.

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About bell hooks

bell hooks

1952–2021 · Cultural critic and feminist author

bell hooks was the pen name of Gloria Jean Watkins, a cultural critic and teacher whose writing connected race, gender and class. Her books include Ain’t I a Woman and Teaching to Transgress; she made accessible feminist education and the practice of love central subjects of her work.

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The primary source (Chicago)

hooks, bell. The Will to Change. 2004. Chapter 2: Understanding Patriarchy.

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Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘The crisis facing men is not the crisis of masculinity, it is the crisis of patriarchal masculinity’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/the-crisis-facing-men-is-not-the-crisis-of-masculinity-it/

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