Hood

Object Lessons

by Alison Kinney, Ian Bogost (Series Editor), Alison Kinney

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things.

We all wear hoods: the Grim Reaper, Red Riding Hood, torturers, executioners and the executed, athletes, laborers, anarchists, rappers, babies in onesies, and anyone who's ever grabbed a hoodie on a chilly day. Alison Kinney's Hood explores the material and symbolic vibrancy of this everyday garment and political semaphore, which often protects the powerful at the expense of the powerless-with deadly results. Kinney considers medieval clerics and the Klan, anti-hoodie campaigns and the Hooded Man of Abu Ghraib, the Inquisition and the murder of Trayvon Martin, uncovering both the hooded perpetrators of violence and the hooded victims in their sights.

"Provocative and highly informative, Alison Kinney's Hood considers this seemingly neutral garment accessory and reveals it to be vexed by a long history of violence, from the Grim Reaper to the KKK and beyond―a history we would do well to address, and redress. Readers will never see hoods the same way again." - Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking

"In spry and intelligent prose, Alison Kinney tours the many uses of the hood in human culture, exploring seemingly unconnected byways and guiding the reader through some surprising connections. The ubiquitous hood, she shows, is an artifact of human relationships with power, the state, and one another. By the end of my time with Hood, I had laughed out loud, sighed in exasperation, and felt by turns both furious and proud." - Rebecca Onion, history writer for Slate Magazine

Object Lessons is published in partnership with an essay series in The Atlantic.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Essays, Social Justice

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 28, 2016

About the author

Alison Kinney is the author of the upcoming nonfiction book UNITED STATES OF REJECTION: A STORY OF LOVE, HATE & HOPE (UGA Press, May 2026), as well as AVIDLY READS OPERA (NYU Press 2021) and HOOD (Bloomsbury 2016).
alisonkinney.com.

Her essays and articles on cultural history, art, opera, literature, and social justice can be found online at Paris Review Daily, The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Guardian, Harper's, Lapham's Quarterly, L.A. Review of Books, The New Republic, Longreads, and other publications. Five of her essays have been named Notable Essays in The Best American Essays, from 2016 through 2020. She teaches nonfiction writing at Eugene Lang College, The New School.

“Provocative and highly informative, Alison Kinney's HOOD considers this seemingly neutral garment accessory and reveals it to be vexed by a long history of violence, from the Grim Reaper to the KKK and beyond-a history we would do well to address, and redress. Readers will never see hoods the same way again.” – Sister Helen Prejean, author of DEAD MAN WALKING

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book does a LOT for such a short volume. Kinney takes on executions, the KKK, the inquisition and torture, modern torture in the 20th and 21st centuries, black bloc protest groups & their treatment by authorities, and finally the racial profiling that is connected to hoods and hoodies. The quotes and anecdotes she relates are familiar and horrifying, from the Archbishop of York (the first black bishop and archbishop of the Church of England), being pulled over for the 8th time in 2000 by police officers and hassled for wearing a hooded anorak when it was raining, to a 1992 report on the LAPD that found, in addition to widespread profiling, that officials used the term NHI, "no humans involved" to describe cases involving young black men. And finally, the powerful final segment, begins: "On a drizzly evening, February 26, 2012, one teenager in a hoodie tried to make himself invisible, to keep his head down in a dangerous environment." There's a full page that just goes through every victim of police homicide and lists what they "shouldn't have done" according to apologists ("played outside...left the house...stayed home...been trans...been homeless" etc.).

It's not ALL incredibly depressing -- she also deals briefly with pop culture; there's one page that references Dune, The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Green Arrow, and The Hood. There's also just some cool facts, like about the invention of the hoodie (1930s, Rochester NY, by the Knickerbocker Knitting Company, which had just renamed itself Champion Knitwear). Surprisingly, this doesn't feel at odds with the rest of the book -- her tone is pretty much the same everywhere, just short of totally academic, with some more casual/colloquial phrases thrown in.

One of my fave quotes, from the part about European laws surrounding Burqinis: "With all these conflicting arguments about secularism, Islamophobia, compulsion, feminism, and misogyny, what's apparent is the preoccupation with surveilling and controlling women's bodies, hoods, and religious, personal, and gender expression. People are often uncomfortable with others who, for whatever reasons, negotiate their own relationships with their hoods."

I got this ARC thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Academic. Much appreciated!

[Sarah Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The history of the hood is a history of power and powerlessness. It’s about acts of hatred, domination, and destruction but also of control of what exactly people’s hoods, and their lives, mean.”

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

At last, I thought, it's actually about the hood and hoodie as I know it, and we're in chapter 4 of 5. Before then we'd looked at people who wear hoods, mostly from the aspect of those who don't wear hoods (mediaeval executioners, it turns out – the victims' being given hoods, as opposed to those committing capital punishment, is still a matter of debate; and the KKK, at some times in their life). But that doesn't mean the book was even then interesting or worthwhile. The rank left-wing bias of this tract is not what I signed up for. The series (and this is the third one I've tried) needs to get a handle of the individual stance of each book, and provide an echt cultural history without all the personal agendas.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Hood" is an interesting and well cited review of the history of the hood and its shifting identity. Kinney suggests that in every iteration, power dictates its meaning and heavily informs one's perspective of this "...most practical, ubiquitous [garment] of the past couple millennia...".
Fascinating read.

[Ripley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a history of the hood as its used as a symbol in art and social and political topics.

The first chapter talks about hoods used to symbolize death or the grim reaper. It gives a history of the hood and the myths behind hoods in executions and capital punishment.

The second chapter talks about the history of the hood in terrorism and war. The author goes into detail about the events at Guantanamo and the atrocities carried out on the prisoners at Abi Ghraib.

The third chapters discusses women in hoods and how hoods have played a role in protests. The author talks about the Seattle riots and police riot gear being a form of "hooding".

The fourth and final chapter discusses the hood as a symbol of youth culture, gang life, and how it stereotypes a person. The case of Trayvon Martin is discussed and how this impacted social and political ideas at the time and how it has changed our entire society.

While I really liked this book, it gave a great detailed history, the author is very open with her bias and her disdain for authority. She uses a lot of pop culture references and some profanity to illustrate her point which helps keep the topic relevant. But I feel like she paints law enforcement in a bad light. This is definitely not a straight history lesson. It has historical context but is based on the authors own ideals. I would recommend it though if you are a fan of the darker side of history as she brings to light a lot of things, like stare stance on capital punishment, that aren't talked about much.

[Simone · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read in Bloomsbury Academic's "Object Lessons" series. I thought this book, a brief cultural history of hoods in mostly American/European culture was exactly what I was hoping for. Kinney illustrates the way these hoods have been used as rhetorical devices, capable of conveying their own sinister meanings. Unfortunately, the hood is often associated with acts of violence and terror: hoods have been used by executioners, torturers at Abu Ghraib,and the KKK. (Side note: I did not realize until reading this book that the KKK has a "bible" which they call the Kloran. Seriously). Kinney's final chapter and crescendo is an examination of the way the seemingly benign cloth hoodie (different in style and tone from the KKK hoods or the executioner's mask) was vilified in the killing of Trayvon Martin.

As Kinney argues: "The history of the hood is a history of power and powerlessness. It's about acts of hatred, domination, and destruction, but also of control over what exactly people's hoods, and their lives, mean.

Many thanks to Bloomsbury Academic and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Hood, all opinions are mine.

[Joseph Spuckler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hood by Alison Kinney is a look at a common feature of clothing throughout history and legend. Kinney is a writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in The Hairpin, The Literary Review, and Gastronomica.

Since moving to Texas, I look forward to fall. It's the short time of year where I can wear a hoodie. As a kid in Cleveland through the 1970s a hoodie was part of everyday clothing. Worn alone in the fall or under a denim jacket and down vest. It was that universal comfort clothing. Today it carries the stigma of a street punk, probable cause, or "hood."

In current culture, we see the Grim Reaper wearing a hood. Hood wearing characters also include Father Time and the executioner. Kinney examines these characters using historical sources for Death and the executioner. The result is not what the average reader would expect. The hood becomes more interesting when it comes to the executioner and capital punishment.

A short history of the hooded Klan is given and the evolution of the well-known white costume and hood. The hood still carries its stigma of racism with businesses in communities banning hoodies in their establishments. Business cannot ban minorities, but they can ban the clothing worn many minorities.

Hood is a short book with a sizeable portion devoted to cited works. It still presents more history than expected on a simple piece of clothing. Hood also manages to explain away some of the urban legends of its long history going back to the ancient Greeks. A very educational and well-written study.

[A Reader's Heaven · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things.
We all wear hoods: the Grim Reaper, Red Riding Hood, torturers, executioners and the executed, athletes, laborers, anarchists, rappers, babies in onesies, and anyone who's ever grabbed a hoodie on a chilly day. Alison Kinney's Hood explores the material and symbolic vibrancy of this everyday garment and political semaphore, which often protects the powerful at the expense of the powerless-with deadly results. Kinney considers medieval clerics and the Klan, anti-hoodie campaigns and the Hooded Man of Abu Ghraib, the Inquisition and the murder of Trayvon Martin, uncovering both the hooded perpetrators of violence and the hooded victims in their sights.

What started off as being quite an interesting history of hoods and those who wear (or don't wear) them soon had me skipping pages, looking for something a little more interesting.

I guess the thing is with a book of this sort is that, while we may be interested somewhat in the history of "things", a whole book can be just a little too much.


Paul
ARH

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

What was meant as a cheeky gift in tribute to my love of hoodies turned out to be a delightful find! Part of a series called "Object Lessons" that elevates, explores, and celebrates ordinary things, Kinney's analysis of how a hood has evolved in meaning and utility over time is entertaining and insightful. Quick, energetic, writing with a diversity of references- a thought provoking read.

[L.E. Fidler · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look into the complex social history of the hood...considering using excerpts in conjunction with pieces from "Citizen" and The Hate U Give...

[Selena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting history packed into this short book, looking at the hood from a number of perspectives and historical lenses.

[Abdul · Rating 5 out of 5]

An accessible and light but very informative book about the complex history of the hood.

[Gabby M · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Trayvon Martin was shot, there was a movement to blame what he was wearing (a hooded sweatshirt) for his death. A young black man should apparently know better than to wear a hoodie out and about in public. Never mind that Trayvon was a 17 year-old kid who was threatening only to the Skittles he was carrying with him, never mind that Trayvon was a human being who should have been able to wear whatever the damn hell he pleased while going about his own business. A hooded sweatshirt, obscuring his face, made him scary. Made him responsible, somehow, for his own cold-blooded murder.

Obviously that's ridiculous. But the hood has been a potent symbol for centuries, and this book examines the cultural history of hoods. Who wears them, and why? What do they mean? Author Alison Kinney traverses a wide history and a variety of contexts to explain the role of the hood; from state-sanctioned execution and terrorism like the Inquisition, the Klan, and Abu Ghraib, to protesters, fairy tales, and all the way down to college students to show how the hood is used by both the powerful and on the powerless to signify the roles they play. The first two sections, which focus on the death penalty and terrorism, are the strongest ones to me, the most cohesive. The rest of the book is more loosely organized and lacks the kind of narrative focus and drive that makes the first two sections compelling.

It's interesting to focus in on one object this way, to think about how its meanings have changed through time. And this book is one of series (other entries include the remote control, drones, etc), but honestly this is the only one that sparked my curiosity enough to pick up. Kinney has clearly done her research...she illustrates how not only has the use of the hood changed over the course of history, but how there have been latter-day distortions of past use of the hood (which she refers to as "shaggy medievalism") to serve the purposes of those who use it in their own time. It's a quick and engaging read, especially if you're inclined to enjoy thinking about privilege and abuse of power.

**I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review**

[Jacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that concentrates on the humble hood, its use, symbolism and meaning. The cover has a rather medieval Robin Hood style hood, which put 'history' very firmly in my head. So, in fact this book was not what I expected. That's not to say it's not interesting or well written, but it concentrates very heavily on the American experience. It's mostly the history of the hood in the 20th and 21st centuries.

The first quarter of the book is exclusively the symbolism of the hood in terms of the executioner and the executed with the greater part of these examples drawn from those American states which still have the death penalty. It goes into detail about the quasi-medieval executioner's hood in Florida, and doesn't spare grim details about executions in other states, including the symbolism of the executed being either hooded or masked to spare the feelings of the onlookers and hide the grim reality of lethal injection or electric chair.

Then just when I was feeling pretty depressed there was the second quarter which went into details of the Ku Klux Klan, briefly about the Spanish Inquisition, and then hits hard at the American inhumanities at Abu Ghraib where prisoners were disoriented and dehumanised by hoods as well as being waterboarded. This is not cheery stuff.

The second half of the book examines the results of wearing a hood in a modern context, from the treatment of peaceful hoodie-wearing protesters in Seattle who were attacked by police with tear gas and rubber bullets, to the experience of the middle-aged white woman asked to remove her hood in a shopping mall. It then goes on to examine the experience and the 'crime' of wearing a hood while black, in particular covering the killing of black youth Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman, which leads the narrative into the Black Lives Matter campaign.

All in all, not a history of the hood, but a close examination of the hood in a particular context. The history and symbolism through the ages is not completely ignored, but it is largely a contemporary commentary.

I find it hard to allocate a star rating. It's a good book, possibly even an important book. It says a lot that should be said, but I didn't enjoy reading it.

[Evan · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a history of the garment in the title, Hood is superficial, pun very much intended. Kinney clearly was only peripherally interested in thinking about hoods as such, as manifest in numerous contexts throughout history and as related to other sartorial practices, especially those involving the face. She was only fleetingly (and superficially) interested in how hoods create meaning.

The book is really about Black Lives Matter, and how the hoodie helps us think about recent manifestations of systemic racism. However, the book is a disappointment in this regard as well, offering more outrage than insight. Kinney vacillates between the old familiar postmodern relativism (the meaning of the hood is a creature of context) and Foucauldian closed loop power discourse (the oppressive establishment controls the discourse, so all manifestations of hooding serve or are perverted by oppressive power; i.e. Hoods either mean white privilege or black oppression).

Despite a fascinating archive on political uses of the hood, Kinney avoids dwelling on matters that would complicate her familiar narrative of oppression and resistance.

She discusses the Klan, for example, as wearing hoods to preserve white privilege while hooding victims to objectify and dehumanize (that's about as good as the "theory" gets, btw). But she doesn't discuss the battles of law enforcement against the Klan, and the passing of anti-mask laws all around the United States specifically to combat hooded Klansmen. That bit of history is important to understanding the context of hoods (and various other face-coverings) in US history. But it's not in Hood, because it's not of much interest towards providing a partial list of racist war crimes committed on American soil against black people.

So, I'm going to keep track of Kinney's bibliography for further research on practices of face covering, but turn to Ta-Nehisi Coates for a more cogent reflection on the current state of American racism.

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hood by Alison Kinney is one in a series called Object Lessons, “a book series about the hidden lives of ordinary things,” including detailed references to the sources used. The hood is indeed an ordinary item of clothing but it has a complex history of symbolic use, from the Grim Reaper to the Ku Klux Klan and beyond. It is not until Kinney gets to the topic of hoodlums and hoodies, however, that the narrative comes alive. As civil right marches did in the 1960s, gatherings of protesters wearing hoodies (peacefully trying to avoid surveillance cameras in public spaces) now calls for helmeted riot police, gas, and rubber bullets in American cities. It is well-documented that White Americans seriously believed that the hoodie Trayvon Martin was wearing provoked such fear in Neighborhood Watch member George Zimmerman that Zimmerman was justified in attacking and killing the youth to “stand his ground” in self defense. As Kinney points out: “You can’t (legally) ban people from shops or schools [or neighborhoods] because they’re Black. You can ban them for wearing hoodies.” And the struggle continues.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much more powerful than the design history book I was expecting. Grows to an emotionally powerful conclusion about a garment that whatever it is, always frames the human face. Really impressed with something I picked up at the V&A museum on a lark.

[Laura Hoffman Brauman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the concepts explored in here were interesting, but it felt like the author was trying too hard to make it read like an academic text. It could be a reader issue, but several times I had to go back and re-read sections to understand her point. There were also times in the text that she would make a side comment regarding something related to the topic and it diminished the effectiveness of some of her perspectives. I love this series, but this one wasn't my favorite.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting, thought-provoking and well-researched exploration of an everyday item – the hood; its origin, meaning and symbolism and the way the wearing of one has often become a political act. From fairy tales to the Grim Reaper, the Inquisition to the Ku Klux Klan, Robin Hood to executioners – all have worn hoods and in our own times hoods and hoodies have gained a reputation far from being simply items of clothing worn for protection. I enjoyed the book, but found the latter half less engaging, as not only did the narrative focus seem to lose its way, but the author obviously had an agenda to show up how prejudiced society has become and how quickly we jump to conclusions when we see a “hoodie”. Of course she is correct, but she concentrated too much on this aspect and I preferred her earlier more general and wide-ranging focus. Nevertheless it’s a fascinating study of an ordinary object and well worth reading.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Hood" is a social history about the way we use hoods and what they have come to stand for. It's about the role hoods have played in justice and injustice and how hoods are used to define and control people.

When looking at historical uses of hoods, it was usually to point out that they didn't actually use hoods or they didn't use the hoods they're depicted as wearing in later paintings or movies. The author looked at how hoods are used to dehumanize the victims in executions, terrorism, torture, and protests. She also examined how hoods are blamed for biased behavior toward blacks or peaceful protesters.

I'd recommend this book to those interested in a closer look at relatively recent instances (Spanish Inquisition, KKK, Abu Ghraib, etc.) of injustice that involved hoods.

I received an ebook review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

[Martina Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating

"Hood" is a great overview of the history of hoods and all that implies. It was a bit hard to get into but well worth plowing through to what ended up being an excellent read.

[Vanessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another Object Lesson short that I very much wanted to enjoy but found wanting in both its writing style and its approach to the object. Maybe, however, these lessons just aren't my jam. Either way, I don't think the editing does this entry any favors. In particular, Ms. Kinney leans hard on quotes from speeches, songs, poems, etc., a crutch that a hard-hearted editor should have kicked out from under her in the early go-rounds, especially given that this volume is only 176 pages. An opportunity semi-wasted.

I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Jacqueline Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the mini-book started with loosely having some sort of thesis in the first chapter, it quickly fell apart into incoherent babble about random incidences in history when hoods were worn. So much lost potential, I was really hoping the criminalization of the hood (Black Lives Matter protests, the Trayvon Martin murder, among so many other tragic topical incidences) would be a major theme, not relegated to about 8 pages at the end of the text.

[Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The history of the hood is a history of power and powerlessness. That [Trayvon Martin's] hoodie came to mean something else was not of his doing, and that's precisely why it matters.

I've read a lot of Alison's writing online, but this is her first book. I appreciate her conversational tone as she explores the cultural meaning of hoods throughout history, ranging from ancient times through The Inquisition, Abu Ghraib, and Trayvon Martin.

[Nicole Geub · Rating 4 out of 5]

the last two chapters were on point! really a provocative look at what the hood means to people of certain times. torture. identity. taking a stand. uniting people. destroying people. this is a rather unique read and totally will make you think about where you stand.
interested yet? I'll let you borrow the book!

[Jack · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book tries to posit a meaning for the hood, but does so after bringing up so many contradictory ideas, and even many where a hood isn't even involved, that it is just sort of incoherent. I get that the meaning changes with use (KKK, Abu Ghraib, Trayvon Martin), but then just say that. This was Lacan level convoluted. Some interesting parts though.

[Saretta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recensione su: http://wp.me/p3X6aw-L6
Review at: http://wp.me/p3X6aw-L9

[Jason Diamond · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been meaning to read the books in this series and Alison Kinney's contribution to it makes me think I should dig into all of the Object Lessons ASAP.

[Mills College Library]

391.43 K558 2016

[Mark · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book presents a disconcerting U.S.-centric view of the history of hoods, with a strong narrative bias that makes no sense to those outside of the cosmopolitan elite of that country.