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Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women Paperback – August 15, 2006

by Susan Faludi (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 236 ratings
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  1. National Book Critics Circle AwardWinner, 1991
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A new edition of the feminist classic, with an all-new introduction exploring the role of backlash in the 2016 election and laying out a path forward for 2020 and beyond

Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award • “Enraging, enlightening, and invigorating, Backlash is, most of all, true.”—Newsday

First published in 1991, Backlash made headlines and became a bestselling classic for its thoroughgoing debunking of a decadelong antifeminist backlash against women’s advances. A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, Susan Faludi brilliantly deconstructed the reigning myths about the “costs” of women’s independence—from the supposed “man shortage” to the “infertility epidemic” to “career burnout” to “toxic day care”—and traced their circulation from Reagan-era politics through the echo chambers of mass media, advertising, and popular culture. 
 
As Faludi writes in a new preface for this edition, much has changed in the intervening years: The Internet has given voice to a new generation of feminists. Corporations list “gender equality” among their core values. In 2019, a record number of women entered Congress. Yet the glass ceiling is still unshattered, women are still punished for wanting to succeed, and reproductive rights are hanging by a thread. This startling and essential book helps explain why women’s freedoms are still so demonized and threatened—and urges us to choose a different future.
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  1. Print length
    608 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Crown
  4. Publication date
    August 15, 2006
  5. Dimensions
    5.47 x 1.3 x 8.27 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0307345424
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0307345424
  8. See all details
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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
236 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book amazing, expertly argued, and detailed. They also praise the writing quality as incredibly well-written.

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9 customers mention "Pacing"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the book amazing, excellently researched, and beautifully written. They also appreciate the detailed critical analysis of our culture.

"Susan Faludi`s book is truly amazing...." Read more

"...This is no liberal rant, but rather a thoughtful, detailed critical analysis of our culture...." Read more

"This book is a favorite... I read it years ago and decided to buy it again. It will open your eyes." Read more

"...a meaty book about feminism, this one will tempt you and will be great reading." Read more

3 customers mention "Writing quality"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book incredibly well-written and meticulously researched.

"There's no denying this book is incredibly well-written and meticulously researched. And I wanted to like it so badly...." Read more

"A beautifully written and expertly argued book. The hands down best book I have read this year." Read more

"Well argued, well written..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

atllaw191
5.0 out of 5 stars I knew this book was a READ and it is
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2019
Verified Purchase
The current political (republican) climate is to THWART LAWS DESIGNED FOR WOMEN, by any means necessary. No one wants an abortion but to restrict one's choice is abominable...and if they were really FOR CHILDREN, THEN THEY'D NOT BE CAGING THOSE FROM ACROSS THE BORDER WHEN THEY ARRIVE, PROVIDE EDUCATION AND FOOD, AND A JOB FOR THEIR PARENTS THAT PAYS SO THEY CAN GROW UP SECURE...MOST OF THE "RED STATES" HAVE ABOMINABLE RECORDS OF ABUSE OF CHILDREN...CHECK IT OUT! This is NOT ABOUT ABORTION, ITS ABOUT KEEPING WOMEN POOR, BROKE, AND AT THE READY OF MEN WHO WOULD ABUSE THEM!
35 people found this helpful
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Gregory A. Butler
5.0 out of 5 stars A TRULY AMAZING BOOK
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2006
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Susan Faludi`s book is truly amazing. With point by point, argument by argument, fact by fact thoroughness, Faludi demolishes numerous sexist myths, including the old chesnut about the "shortage of marriagable men" that has caused so much panic and misery among American women for the last 30 years.

This is one of the best books on women and sexism ever written in America. Buy it!
16 people found this helpful
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doc peterson
4.0 out of 5 stars Well argued, well written
Reviewed in the United States on October 27, 2005
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While some of the examples Susan Faludi uses to support her idea - that feminism is experiencing a backlash and women's rights are under attack more than ever - are a bit dated, her essential point remains shockingly valid.

What was most disturbing to discover was the subtleness by which feminist gains are undermined: in film, conversation, advertisements, in education and the workplace. This is no liberal rant, but rather a thoughtful, detailed critical analysis of our culture.

As a previous reviewer points out, television references are a bit of a stretch, and seem even more dated with the passage of time since the book's initial publication. Nonetheless I found Faludi's comments and observations dead-on. It is a disturbing and thought-provoking read. Recommended.
29 people found this helpful
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Jane
5.0 out of 5 stars A solid feminist herstory of the 1980's
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2016
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This book is one of the most comprehensive looks at the 1980's I think I've ever read. Being born in the early 1990's I was also raised in an era that called itself post-feminist, but this book is really eye opening.
My only quibble is that the book in one sense ducks certain internal debates within feminism, but as a text meant for those who aren't necessarily feminists, that makes it more accessible.
13 people found this helpful
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Denise Mavers
5.0 out of 5 stars or do not feel like that".
Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2016
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Even though I have not finished reading it as with many books on women's issues; "Backlash" gives the background story to events in America and that was helpful. Makes me feel more at ease being a women, as some women feel "oh women do not do that, or do not feel like that".
8 people found this helpful
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NW Mom
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2016
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This book is a favorite... I read it years ago and decided to buy it again. It will open your eyes.
6 people found this helpful
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The Buffalo
5.0 out of 5 stars Early, somewhat flawed feminist awakening.
Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2017
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Very early and very good feminist tome, although beset by some factual shortfalls and requiring some leaps of faith.
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M. Suzik
4.0 out of 5 stars Backlash: The Undeclared War Against Women
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2010
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This book is a little dated, but some of the things are going on against women as they are today. It was published in the early 1990's. I especially like the fact that she goes into detail about this backlash by setting chapters aside for movies, TV, etc. If you desire to read a meaty book about feminism, this one will tempt you and will be great reading.
7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Booknerd
5.0 out of 5 stars seminal text
Reviewed in Australia on October 17, 2024
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A must for gender scholars/students
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alex
5.0 out of 5 stars Great gift for any man you know
Reviewed in Germany on February 3, 2016
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I already know a lot about backlash, being a lifelong feminist, but had never read the book. Well, I can tell you it's a massive eye-opener, even from the standpoint of someone who's used to being inundated with stories of the harsh realities of being a woman. At the same time that I bought it I bought a copy for a guy friend who says 'feminism is no longer necessary' (ahem) and he already loves the book. It's incredibly thorough, well researched and written in way that makes reading it compulsive. prepare to be very saddened by the state of women in the media, fashion and elsewhere... and frankly, revolted by the things that men in those industries have done and said over the years, in the efforts to 'put us in our place'. Despite that, it's a must-read no matter what your gender may be.
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Damaskcat
5.0 out of 5 stars Is this happening again in the 21st century?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 24, 2010
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This book is a must read for anyone interested in the way women are treated in society today. It analyses the 1980s and the backlash against women in fascinating detail and provides a great deal of verifiable facts and figures to support the author's argument. Faludi looks at the gains made by the women's movement in the 1970s and they way they were opposed in the 1980s. She relates interviews with the prime movers of the New Right in America who are steadfastly opposed to women playing an equal part in society. She exposes the hypocrisy of the women involved in this movement who are living their lives in accordance with feminist principles - sharing childcare and domestic chores with their husbands and working outside the home - but their work outside the home is all directed at dismantling the gains made by women and returning them to the domestic front.

The sections I found most frightening were the one analysing popular films of the time and the one about women's reproductive rights. The film `Fatal Attraction' started off as a story about a man having an extra-marital affair while his wife was out of town and being found out when she returned. It did not involve the death of the `other woman' and it made clear the whole situation arose because of the man's actions. It was a moral fable. The finished article was of course a condemnation of the other women as being evil and unnatural and the man and his wife come out of it as saints in comparison. Many other films of the time portrayed career women as evil. The reproductive rights chapter shows how the powerful right wing successfully opposed - and in many cases closed down family planning clinics and persecuted their staff.

Many of the examples quoted are from America - that nation of extremes - but there are examples showing a weaker backlash in the UK. In a sense the power of the backlash is a tribute to the power of the women's movement but it also serves to show how quickly all the gains of the 1970s could be lost in both countries. The image which stuck in my mind was of women working in a chemical plant who - because of the laws about the safety of unborn babies - were faced with a choice of losing their jobs working with chemicals or being sterilised. At that time sterilisation meant hysterectomy. The women's family situation often meant they were the sole breadwinner and the jobs were higher paid than most. They felt they had no choice but to have the operation. Several subsequent court cases ruled against the women trying to obtain compensation when they were eventually made redundant. Their stories read like something out of the 19th century not the last quarter of the 20th century.

As I say this book is frightening reading and you can see similar things happening today in the 21st century if you read newspapers and women's magazines. Domesticity is glorified, women are encouraged to stay at home with their children and described as strident, unfeminine and harridans if they dare to express their views in public. Is a second backlash against women happening now before our eyes?
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Laura Stokes
5.0 out of 5 stars Great
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 27, 2023
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Great
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Helen
4.0 out of 5 stars Enlightening history of backlashes against women's attempts to change their status
Reviewed in Australia on May 16, 2021
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Still reading, but already enlightening - a history of the successful backlashes against women's repeated attempts - over centuries - to change their social and economic status. Written in a readable journalistic style, it is fascinating on the role of media and entertainment industries in the backlash pattern (who knew that the original script of Fatal Attraction held the philandering husband responsible?!). Sadly it is very relevant now as we seem to be experiencing a strong backlash, at least in Australia.
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