A Study Guide for Susan Faludi's "Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Nonfiction Classics for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Nonfiction Classics for Students for all of your research needs.

PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'S 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE From the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author of Backlash, comes In the Darkroom, an astonishing confrontation with the enigma of her father and the larger riddle of identity consuming our age. “In the summer of 2004 I set out to investigate someone I scarcely knew, my father. The project began with a grievance, the grievance of a daughter whose parent had absconded from her life. I was in pursuit of a scofflaw, an artful dodger who had skipped out on so many things—obligation, affection, culpability, contrition. I was preparing an indictment, amassing discovery for a trial. But somewhere along the line, the prosecutor became a witness.” So begins Susan Faludi’s extraordinary inquiry into the meaning of identity in the modern world and in her own haunted family saga. When the feminist writer learned that her 76-year-old father—long estranged and living in Hungary—had undergone sex reassignment surgery, that investigation would turn personal and urgent. How was this new parent who identified as “a complete woman now” connected to the silent, explosive, and ultimately violent father she had known, the photographer who’d built his career on the alteration of images? Faludi chases that mystery into the recesses of her suburban childhood and her father’s many previous incarnations: American dad, Alpine mountaineer, swashbuckling adventurer in the Amazon outback, Jewish fugitive in Holocaust Budapest. When the author travels to Hungary to reunite with her father, she drops into a labyrinth of dark histories and dangerous politics in a country hell-bent on repressing its past and constructing a fanciful—and virulent—nationhood. The search for identity that has transfixed our century was proving as treacherous for nations as for individuals. Faludi’s struggle to come to grips with her father’s metamorphosis takes her across borders—historical, political, religious, sexual--to bring her face to face with the question of the age: Is identity something you “choose,” or is it the very thing you can’t escape?

“A groundbreaking, 600 page treatise that shines feminism’s insights into various corners of masculinity in a way that hasn’t been done before . . . Stiffed is eye-opening enough to change the way we understand each day’s news.” — Boston Sunday Globe “Faludi masterfully weaves larger essays with case histories and personality profiles. She connects the general to the specific and enlivens her argument with a host of haunted voices.” — Washington Post Book World “Susan Faludi’s Backlash . . .[is] the most important book on women in recent decades . . . Stiffed is even better than Backlash. It is a significant and serious work.” — New York Review of Books “The worst thing about Stiffed: The Betrayal of the American Man is that you immediately want to run around grabbing people by the lapels and beseeching them, “Read this book! Now! I’ve got to talk about it . . . ” — San Diego Union Tribune “[Susan Faludi’s] ear knows how to listen; her heart is made of sympathy; her mind is always changing... Brilliant book. ” — John Leonard, New York Newsday “In this monumental and surprising book, sure to make a tremendous impact on thoughtful people, [Faludi] overlooks no part of the national landscape . . . As in her Pulitzer-Prize-winning Backlash, Faludi accuses society, and documents her claims. Read Stiffed. You’ll never forget it.” — Harriete Behringer “[Stiffed] is the product of six years of aggressive reporting and an admirable knack for bringing the results to life. No one will ever put this book down for lack of vivid scene setting or compassionate observation.” — The New York Times Book Review “[Stiffed is] a work of astonishing compassion . . . It issues a dare for both men and women who’ve long been dunned into passivity to do something significant to change their lives, to reject the values of a society that would prefer for them to seek easy answers.” — Seattle Weekly

A Study Guide for Susan Faludi's "Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Nonfiction Classics for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Nonfiction Classics for Students for all of your research needs.

"Today, only twenty percent of Americans are wed by age twenty-nine, compared to nearly sixty percent in 1960. The Population Reference Bureau calls it a 'dramatic reversal.' [This book presents a] portrait of contemporary American life and how we got here, through the lens of the single American woman, covering class, race, [and] sexual orientation, and filled with ... anecdotes from ... contemporary and historical figures"--

The LEA Guide to Composition is firmly based on research into how people learn to write and draws on the most significant strategies and techniques in composition studies. But this text is not just about the act of writing. It is about using writing as a vehicle for learning--about the world, about the academy, about oneself. The focus is on writing as a means of interpretation. The emphasis throughout is on encouraging reflection and developing critical thinking skills. Although the text suggests ways of teaching that reflect knowledge about how people most easily learn to become competent writers, it is specifically designed to allow for numerous approaches to teaching composition. Instructors will value this flexibility. This text is finely tuned to the needs and interests of today's composition students and teachers. Classroom tested at various universities over a four-year period to refine and improve its effectiveness, the Guide is distinguished by a range of carefully crafted instructional features: *Reading-Writing Connection. An extensive selection of fresh, thought-provoking, professional work allows students to internalize models and acquire appropriate genre familiarity. Student papers are included to illustrate how others have responded to real writing tasks similar to those the readers of this book will face. *Critical Reading and Thinking. Numerous reading selections are thoroughly analyzed to provide models of close, critical reading. Critical Reading Guides, provided for some selections, draw students in by asking rhetorical questions that develop critical thinking skills and better understanding of how the authors produced key effects. *Diverse Voices. Specially designed writing activities encourage students who are non-native speakers of English, or who come from non-mainstream cultural backgrounds, to share their perspectives with the entire class. *Writing Activities. More than 60 writing activities of various types are included, suitable for students with a range of writing experience. Many of these are short assignments that are linked to longer ones, which allows students to build their skills sequentially, adding new skills as old ones are practiced and mastered. *Writing Guides. Based on years of teaching experience, these guides provide detailed information and concrete, practical advice about how to succeed on selected assignments in each chapter. *Group Activities. Selected writing assignments include collaborative workshop activities that prompt students to engage in a variety of group efforts that enhance the writing process. As a result, group work progresses with a clear purpose and well-defined goals, leading to more student involvement and, ultimately, better writing. *Application of Key Ideas. Writing Assignments, Writing Guides, and Critical Reading Guides are complemented by activities that allow students to practice using important concepts discussed in the text that progress with a clear purpose and well-defined before they begin an actual assignment. *Journal Entries. Prompts throughout the text are included to increase the amount of writing students do, to enhance reflection and critical thinking, and to engage students in reflecting on and making connections between college and their lives outside of class. *Handbook. The handbook provides basic information about the form and function of language. It focuses on the usage conventions that are a crucial part of academic writing. In addition, it covers differences and similarities in the specific conventions that govern writing in the humanities, social sciences, and science. The documentation formats for these three major divisions of the undergraduate curriculum are described in detail, with full-length student papers to illustrate the formats in context. An Instructor's Manual is available with this text, upon adoption.