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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Faludi asserts that the 1980s and early 90s legal attacks against pregnant mothers could not be motivated by a desire to protect fetuses because at the same time which of the following policies was in place?

2. To gain support for the anti-abortion backlash, the media frame the struggle as:

3. Which book blames women for depleting men of "vim and vigor"?

4. The co-directors of which of the following organizations declare themselves "the psychological arm of the women's movement"?

5. Which of the following occur following Reagan's second term in office?

Short Essay Questions

1. Briefly chronicle George Gilder's career in the feminist movement.

2. According to Faludi, why are men like John Willke and Randall Terry engaged in the fight against abortion.

3. Michael Levin and his wife Margarita Levin are highlighted as examples of a couple who espouse anti-feminist views while benefiting from feminist thoughts and perspectives. In what ways does Faludi believe this is seen in their lives?

4. Discuss the history of the term masochism and how it has been used to label women. Explain how the American Psychiatric Association considers adding this term to its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in 1985.

5. Highlight the 1980s battle against abortion and women's rights to control their reproductive rights.

6. The feminist movement gained support and momentum in 1984 when Representative Geraldine Ferraro was nominated for vice-president on the Democratic ticket. Four years later, however, female candidates running for office are at record lows and they do not win most of the races for which they run. What is the explanation for this vast shift over a four-year period?

7. Faludi writes that many fundamentalist preachers fear feminism because it threatens their status. Identify and explain the reasons she gives for this fear.

8. How does Sylvia Ann Hewlett attack and affect the ERA?

9. Recount the backlash's efforts to eliminate the effectiveness of the Women's Educational Equity Act.

10. Discuss at least two of the implications of the fetal protection movement.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze chapter11, "The Backlash Brain Trust: From Neocons to Neofems" in which Faludi claims that authors both frighten and confuse people about feminism in the 1980s. In your analysis highlight the work of four of these authors.

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the book, Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women, Faludi highlights research studies and books that use flawed data collection, methods of analysis, or interpretations. Three of such studies were the Harvard-Yale marriage study, the work of Dr. Srully Blotnick, and Lenore Weitzman's 1985 book, The Divorce Revolution. Describe the role each of these works played in subverting the fight for women's rights. Highlight two or three examples from each of the three publications.

Essay Topic 3

Working Woman and Good Housekeeping are two women's magazines that have played a role in the fight for women's rights. Summarize the position taken by each magazine in regards to the feminist movement. Summaries should first present the magazine's position across the decades from the 1950s to the present and then deal with the position of the magazine in general. How do you believe their positions have affected the feminist movement?

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