The Morning After

The Morning After analyzes the rise of anti-feminist backlash in American society during the 1980s and early 1990s. Through research and interviews, Faludi documents how media, popular culture, and political forces worked to undermine women's rights and progress. The book examines specific cases of resistance to feminism across multiple sectors including the workplace, entertainment, fashion, and reproductive rights. Faludi investigates claims about "post-feminist" America and challenges statistics and stories used to argue against feminist goals. Through detailed reporting and historical context, this work tracks the origins and mechanisms of anti-feminist messaging in American culture. The analysis focuses on both overt opposition to women's equality and subtle forms of pushback in areas like advertising and self-help trends. The Morning After stands as a key text in understanding cycles of progress and regression in social movements, revealing how advances in women's rights often face organized opposition. The work demonstrates the role of media narratives in shaping public attitudes toward social change.

Many readers found the book to be thoroughly researched and detail-rich, with clear documentation of the media's role in shaping narratives about feminism in the 1980s. Readers appreciated Faludi's analysis of specific media coverage and her examination of political messaging. Common criticisms include the book's length and dense writing style. Several readers noted it could be repetitive and would benefit from tighter editing. Some felt the focus was too narrow on white, middle-class women's experiences. Reader quote from Goodreads: "Important information but needed a better editor - could have made the same points in half the length." Ratings across platforms: Goodreads: 4.1/5 (2,800+ ratings) Amazon: 4.2/5 (50+ ratings) LibraryThing: 4.0/5 (400+ ratings) A frequent note from recent readers is that while the book covers the 1980s-early 1990s, many of the media patterns Faludi identified remain relevant to current discourse about feminism and women's rights.

Backlash by Barbara Cose A deep examination of how media and society resist women's progress through systematic pushback against feminist gains.

The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf An analysis of how cultural pressures and beauty standards function as tools for controlling women's advancement in society.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir A comprehensive study of women's oppression throughout history and the social constructs that maintain gender inequality.

The Creation of Patriarchy by Gerda Lerner A historical investigation into the development of female subordination and the establishment of institutionalized gender inequality.

Where the Girls Are by Susan Douglas An examination of mass media's role in shaping women's identities and perpetuating gender stereotypes from the 1950s through the 1990s.

🔹 Published in 1991, this book argued that the 1980s saw a significant cultural backlash against feminism, despite (or because of) women's advances in previous decades 🔹 Susan Faludi won the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism in 1991, the same year she published The Morning After, for a Wall Street Journal article about the human impact of leveraged buyouts 🔹 The book became a #1 New York Times bestseller and sparked intense debate, with some critics calling it the most important book about women since Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique 🔹 Faludi conducted over 500 interviews while researching the book, speaking with everyone from Hollywood executives to conservative activists to women's rights leaders 🔹 The book's original title was Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women, and it's still commonly known by this name in many circles