Part 1: Chapter 1 Summary and Analysis

Backlash: The Undeclared War against American Women details how politicians, journalists, clergy, business leaders, physicians, and the legal profession in the 1980s blame feminism of the late 1960s and early 1970s for all the evil in contemporary society and systematically use popular culture to put women psychologically and physically back in their "proper" place.

Politicians, journalists, and business leaders agree that women, having come of age, need no more help advancing, but popular wisdom says women "have never been more miserable". Surveys show that an overwhelming majority of women do not feel liberated or equal. They need equal pay, equal opportunity, an Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), the right to abortion, maternity leave, and decent childcare. Women realize that men's opposition causes "resentment and stress". An "insidious" counter-assault on women's rights uses the "Big Lie", joining scientific research to "dime-store...