You may need to consider the problem from his point of view. I've had economy class seats where the reclining of the one in front left the whole weight of the seatback on my knees, and I couldn't move my legs at all. I'm only 5ft 9 inches tall. In some cases, too, if the seat in front is reclined, the tray table is digging into your stomach. If the seat is reclined at the wrong time, there's no avoiding that.
It may have been that you could only recline your seat by causing outright discomfort or pain to the guy behind you.