Henrik Ibsen was truly the Father of Modern Drama! His plays are much more "in-tune" with today's life than many scholars want to believe or will admit. Hedda was a powerful woman, who on the surface appeared to be confined by a dress, imprisoned in man's house, and smothered by a male-dominated society. It would appear that Thea Elvstead was the woman with more control, but this is not true. Hedda was a calculating "bitch" who dared (quite shrewdly) to cross over her set in stone "boundaries," manipulate others, and stand back and watch others lives be destroyed as a result. But when she is backed into a corner by the "new" creative couple (George & Thea) and Judge Brack, she takes the final power into her own hand. How ironic that the power is her late father's pistol. How tragic is her death when it was the ultimate control of a destiny that she so strongly desired? Henrik, you were a true visonary!!!

Hedda Gabler is a wonderful story of a woman desperately trying to have control over her life. Married to a husband she doesn't love and pregnant with a child she doesn't want, Hedda seeks comfort in an old friend. There are enough surprizes in this play to keep it interesting throughout. Ibsen uses his brilliant writing style to capture the very essence of Hedda. I highly recommend Hedda Gabler as well as other works by Henrik Ibsen.

Hedda Gabler lives in an absolute prison. Her idylic residence is a prison, her marriage to a hopeful "ilustrious intellectual" is a prison, but above all, she lives imprisoned by herself, trapped by the social parameters that demand her to live the way she does. Hedda just can't figure out how to get out of that tedious state. She's intelligent, cold, severe; Gabler has an almost prodigious capacity to obtain all the information she inquires about the people around her; she manipulates them, she seems to get involved, but she simply tries to take advantage of the situation. Apparently, she doesn't feel much, but in reality, Hedda is in constant turmoil - her involvement has to do, almost exclusively, with what she just cannot allow herself to do.

For this woman, being able to have some sort of "power" over someone becomes the most exciting of all experiences, however - there's a point when she no longer will be able to manipulate the situation on her favor, she will realize how many forces have power over her; therefore, she will simply do the most congruent and coherent of things, as unexpected and shocking as the outcome of this play could possibly be.

This compelling book systematically lays out the case for a post-80s backlash against feminism (firstly setting the scene in a wider historical context). This backlash is all the more insidious because (as in the past) it is not uprfront in its attacks, disguising its intentions by pretending to have women's interests at heart. It manipulates the media and uses many forms of subtle propaganda to get its message across: that feminism has failed, the women are better off when they are "free" to remain in the home, the career woman are burnt out and can't get husbands... and many other such widespread myths.

Such theories are proved to be not only misguided or biased but actually statistically untrue. Faludi is using FACTS, not just rhetoric. Opinions are not just stated, they are backed up with example after example, interviews and meticulous research. Of course Susan Faludi has an agenda... but so does any journalist, writer or documentary maker when they take a subject, it is not possible (nor desirable) to write without idealogy.

Everyone should read this book because we all need to understand how very much in the power of the media we are! Do we really imagine that the media is an independent entity? It's not, it's controlled by a handful of powerful individuals who pick and choose what they want to tell us, according to their own interests. This is not raving conspiracy theory, it's reality. Every citizen of a democracy has a responsibility to try to find out the truth of things, not just accept what they're spoonfed.

Of particular note are the comments on various films ("Fatal Attraction", "Three Men and a Baby"). We so often view movies as just entertainment, the fact is that they are as political and potentially didactic as any talk back radio host! We should always be questioning what a piece of "entertainment" is trying to tell us and why. I watch a lot of films and sometimes feel that a lot of my knowledge of life comes subconciously from this source... This is scary when I remember that films are merely one person's opinion, they are not reality and generally have little to do with the real world!

But even more important to me, is the message of this "Backlash" that feminism is (still) under attack. Feminism has become something of a dirty word. Some women are unwilling to admit to such a label saying "I agree with it in principal, but..." Women (and men) need to wake up and realise that feminists come in all sorts of guises and that feminism is at base simply the belief that women should have equal rights to men!

The most important myth that this book dispels is that feminism is over, or outlived its usefulness. There are some (Right-wing largely) who would argue that feminism has been a dismal failure for both men and women and society in general (leading to divorce, disharmony, gang warfare, earthquakes, whatever). There are others (some times even so-called feminists) who would say quite complacently that feminism had its day (back in the seventies presumably) and now we women can live as we like and it's all worked out well.

Particualarly when you look at the struggle for women's rights in an historical perspective (as in this book) it is easy to see how ridiculous both these attitudes are. Feminism has not 'failed' because it is not completed! It has not yet achieved it's goals. And after all it's scarcely a hundred years since the struggle was begun. Would you say that the civil rights movement is finished? Of course not because the evidence is all around you. As it is with Feminism.

Read this book if you are a thinking individual with an open mind! It was published some time ago now, but it's message is no less relavent now...

After finishing this dense 460-page book, I am amazed that this was my first excursion into the area of Woman's Studies, but I could not be happier with my choice. Backlash is a thought provoking comprehensive look at women and America in the 1980's. While the information and examples are dated, the underlying themes still resonate in today's society.

I take issue with those who label Faludi a "man-hater." She made a point to identify women who were part of the anti-feminist trends, which lends more weight to her theory of a backlash. When men were used as examples, it was for a good cause. I never thought Faludi was blaming or targeting men as the reason for the backlash, rather she focused on society as a whole.

A previous reviewer mentioned Faludi's use of specific examples weakened her argument, bringing her to the level of those she criticizes. While Faludi does use specific examples, she also stresses on having viable statistics to back her claims. Partial evidence of this can be found in the over 400 citations she utilized.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is curious to know more about the status of women in America. Speaking from personal experience, this is one of the few books that have made me view my world differently. I cannot think of higher praise.

Love it or hate it, Backlash is bar none the most comprehensive, interesting, and thorough treatment of the problems the women's movement has faced in the wake of the 70's. Faludi adroitly takes on the "trends" began and promulgated in the media, the mostly male fashion industry's promotion of child-like girl's dresses over business attire, and TV & cinema's exaltation of the stay-at-home mom.

Sometimes poorly documented and allusive in its interpretations of the messages in media and at other times unsettling in the clarity and truth of its arguments, Backlash is reads like a journalist's review of society's recent responses to feminism. People who pronounce the view that a woman's place is in the home are shown to be hyporites in their private lives. Faludi points out the irony of strong-willed conservative female activists who give their all to keeping women in the home while their own are in day care.

While I may have found some points where I disagreed with her interpretation of media phenomena, Faludi showed me quite effectively where the backlash against feminism is and how it has worked and still works to try to place discriminatory expectations on women. If you're reading Faludi, I'd definitely appreciate a revision for the new century, as some of the references to late 80's TV & film are a little dated.

Susan Faludi successfully takes a journalistic approach to "Stiffed." This is an improvement over the mock academic style of "Backlash," which was widely criticized for weak research and glaring errors.

"Stiffed" is very well written, and each section can be read independently. Faludi does a good job of bringing each narrative back to the central theme of how society has failed men.

But like "Reviving Ophelia," careful readers will note that every person who is portrayed as a helpless victim of society or the media just happens to come from a family dominated by abuse, abandonment, alcoholism, or death. And that their adult lives mirror these problems as if they are trying to recreate these family relationships through their marriage or jobs. Coincidence ? Or is it really the media's fault ? In fact, parts of "Stiffed" seem to actively rebuke the role of society. Most people aren't fighting "society" or the media, their struggles are with dysfunctional "families" at work and inappropriate personal relationships.

Faludi looks at both issues, and the book is most convincing when it uses the theme of family tragedy to tie together the narrative threads. The role of society seems trivial in comparison, although "Stiffed" does explain the anger of men that feel society has somehow betrayed them for not repairing them. A woman reading "Stiffed" in that frame of mind might actually get some insights about men.

Faludi seems to be on the right track in that she at least touches on family histories, which are often a taboo in this field. I'd like to see her do another book about women comparing the relative importance of society/media with the effects of abuse, abandonment, alcoholism, and death. Which one really causes women (and men) to marry jerks ? "Stiffed" just doesn't go far enough.

But that's a marketing dilemma, after all. Looking at family history is old hat, going back over a century. A post-modern expose' of societal hypocracy and conspiracy used to seem so hip and so much more comforting, but in our post-post-post-modern era, maybe Faludi will really bring it back home next time.

Susan Faludi is a journalist's journalist. As a feminist, a lot of what is going on in the world with our men has disturbed and even frightened me. Our American men seem to have a boatload of troubles, and Ms. Faludi interviews various American men from many different walks of life about their struggles. I found the book hard to read at first, and then fascinating...The best parts about this book are two-fold: 1. She interviews these men and lets THEM speak IN THEIR OWN WORDS; a feat I think is incredible and laudable. 2. She changes her opinions multiple times throughout the book. Her transformation from adversary to ally is hopeful and maybe even heartwarming. Though she has no simple solutions to the problems facing the American male, she is able to pinpoint various similar causes to explain agressive male behavior. I found the book inspiring and contrary to the other reviewers, I found the length to be just right. Any less and we wouldn't have heard so many stories from so many people, and I doubt the full impact of Faludi's transformation would be felt. I reccommend this book HIGHLY, especially for those who are quick to judge without Faludi's sense of compassion...and that means you, my feminist brothers and sisters.

Susan Faludi's book, "Stiffed," is an exhaustive, comprehensive analysis of how the role(s) of men have evolved and changed in our society during the twentieth century. The main thrust of her argument is that men no longer "feel" like men because they have been "betrayed" by their fathers during childhood--and ultimately even by the corporate structure in America and by the growth of the mass media and entertainment conglomerates, which prevent them from having or feeling a sense of real PURPOSE (as men) in society in terms of the kinds of job tasks they perform.

Men, in short, says Faludi, no longer feel RELEVANT in a meaningful way in today's modern society.

Writing more as a very perceptive SOCIOLOGIST than as a feminist writer per se, Faludi interviews blue collar workers in various occupations, as well as men in sports, the military, the Apollo Space Program, the entertainment (movie industry)--as well as many other individuals and other groups of people too numerous to mention here.

Does she have a point? Are her observations and "personal interviews"/comentaries credible and deserving of close attention? MOST DEFINITELTY! Faludi holds up a mirror of how men have come to feel about themselves and see themselves in American society---and the image that reflects back is a disturbing one to say the least!

Readers of "Stiffed" may criticize Faludi bitterly for the points of view she expresses. Her book is extremely long and (forgivably) a bit repetitive; but it is beautifully and clearly written. Count me as one reader who has found her book as perceptive and thought provoking as any book I have read in a long time. The "case" which Faludi makes about male masculinity may be overstated, and readers may not agree in part or in whole with many of the ideas she expresses, but what she says cannot and should not be IGNORED and deserve a reader's careful considration.

Controversal as her analysis of men's roles in modern, American Society might be,the fact remains that she has written an unusually perceptive and, I think, IMPORTANT book.

Read it!