The Prettiest Woman
(Paperback)
Publishing Details
The Prettiest Woman
By (Author) Grant Farred
University of Minnesota Press
University of Minnesota Press
25th February 2026
United States
Classifications
Professional and Scholarly
Non Fiction
Popular culture
Film history, theory or criticism
Physical Properties
Paperback
82
Width 127mm, Height 178mm
113g
Description
Uncovering Hollywood's perpetual longing for a lost industrial America
"We don't make things in America anymore": like clockwork, this refrain resurfaces in political discourse, a reflection of yearning for a bygone era of industrial productivity. In his latest work, Grant Farred uses the 1990 film Pretty Woman to expose and critique this lingering nostalgia for late-industrial capitalism.
Situating Pretty Woman alongside Reagan-era films including Wall Street, Farred examines the congealment of such a pervasive romanticized view of the United States as a fading industrial powerhouse. Drawing on an eclectic range of thinkers-from Raymond Williams and Slavoj iek to Mick Jagger-The Prettiest Woman offers a unique analysis of the ways Hollywood perpetuates the myth of a lost "productive America," highlighting the seductive power of this fantasy despite its disconnect from economic and political realities.
Author Bio
Grant Farred is author of several books, including What's My Name: Black Vernacular Intellectuals; Martin Heidegger Saved My Life; and An Essay for Ezra: Racial Terror in America (all from Minnesota).
