Perspective requires time. With six years having passed since the events of September 11, 2001, we are beginning to see some critical analysis not only of the ramifications of that day but how we responded as a nation. In The Terror Dream: Fear and Fantasy in Post-9/11 America, Susan Faludi provides a unique view of our response. Even if you don't agree with her, her case is both well-researched and well-written.

Faludi, an award-winning journalist and author, argues that after 9/11 America withdrew into a "dream state" marked by four perhaps uniquely American archetypes. The archetypes are related and based in significant, if not exclusive, part on the cultural roles we have historically assigned the sexes. At bottom, they indicate that America engaged in myth-making rather than addressing the reality of the events of that day.

The first step, according to her, was to undermine and demote the concepts of strong women and the role of women as leaders and equals in society. Faludi points out how media coverage following 9/11 focused on firemen and other males as the heroes of the day. Although women also played heroic roles that day, in the rescue effort and in the aftermath, they were difficult, if not impossible, to find amidst the heroes of the day. At first glance, this may not only seem to conflict with our recollections of the time but Faludi simply returning to a topic she explored in Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women. Yet, as in Backlash, Faludi's use of facts and statistics (with supporting footnotes) documents the minimization of the female voice in the media in the aftermath of 9/11. This effort not only undercut, but seemingly reversed many of the gains women had seen with the advent and growth of the feminist movement.

Hand-in-hand with the demotion of the strong, independent woman came the increasing build-up and importance of "manly men." She sees America hearkening back to 1950s Westerns with the John Wayne-type hero, the big strong man who would save the day and risk his life — or even die — trying. For example, she notes how four men were built up as the manly heroes on Flight 93 while the female flight attendants were relegated to weak roles. She also points out how Time magazine's first issue after 9/11 showed only men under the banner "Heroes" while the one photo under "Survivor" was of a bloodied woman sitting on a curb, a man with a badge putting his hands on her shoulders in a sign of protection and strong comfort. Likewise, all but one of the photos in the "Heroes" section of Newsweek's 9/11 Commemorative Issue, were of men. "The one example of female heroism offered was a cameo of two women in the line of traditional feminine duty: elementary school teachers who 'did their best to appear calm and look after their kids.'"