Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women
A proper name individualizes a person, the lack of it making him or her less noticeable. This insight is apt in regard to the nameless women in the Hebrew Bible, a resolutely androcentric work. As Judaism traditionally barred women from studying, many Jewish feminists have sought access to the Jewis...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-07-01
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| Series: | Religions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/7/365 |
| _version_ | 1797562203258224640 |
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| author | Anat Koplowitz-Breier |
| author_facet | Anat Koplowitz-Breier |
| author_sort | Anat Koplowitz-Breier |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A proper name individualizes a person, the lack of it making him or her less noticeable. This insight is apt in regard to the nameless women in the Hebrew Bible, a resolutely androcentric work. As Judaism traditionally barred women from studying, many Jewish feminists have sought access to the Jewish canon. Much of American-Jewish women’s poetry can thus be viewed as belonging to the midrashic-poetry tradition, attempting to vivify the biblical women by “revisioning” the Bible. This article examines two nameless wives who, although barely noted in the biblical text, play a significant role in their husbands’ stories—Mrs. Noah and Mrs. Job. Although numerous exegetes have noted them across history, few have delved into their emotions and characters. Exploration of the way in which contemporary Jewish-American poets treat these women and connect them to their own world(s) is thus of great interest to both modern and biblical scholars. Herein I focus on five poets: Elaine Rose Glickman (“Parashat Noach”), Barbara D. Holender (“Noah’s Wife,” and “Job’s Wife”), Oriana Ivy (“Mrs. Noah,” and “Job’s Wife”), Shirley Kaufman (“Job’s Wife”), and Sherri Waas Shunfenthal (“Noah’s Wife Speaks,” “The Animals are our Friends,” “Time,” and “Arc of Peace”). |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:24:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-adcd96da96974d3e9c8503f324c18b10 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:24:57Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-adcd96da96974d3e9c8503f324c18b102023-11-20T07:04:12ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442020-07-0111736510.3390/rel11070365Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish WomenAnat Koplowitz-Breier0Comaprative Literature Department, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan 5290002, IsraelA proper name individualizes a person, the lack of it making him or her less noticeable. This insight is apt in regard to the nameless women in the Hebrew Bible, a resolutely androcentric work. As Judaism traditionally barred women from studying, many Jewish feminists have sought access to the Jewish canon. Much of American-Jewish women’s poetry can thus be viewed as belonging to the midrashic-poetry tradition, attempting to vivify the biblical women by “revisioning” the Bible. This article examines two nameless wives who, although barely noted in the biblical text, play a significant role in their husbands’ stories—Mrs. Noah and Mrs. Job. Although numerous exegetes have noted them across history, few have delved into their emotions and characters. Exploration of the way in which contemporary Jewish-American poets treat these women and connect them to their own world(s) is thus of great interest to both modern and biblical scholars. Herein I focus on five poets: Elaine Rose Glickman (“Parashat Noach”), Barbara D. Holender (“Noah’s Wife,” and “Job’s Wife”), Oriana Ivy (“Mrs. Noah,” and “Job’s Wife”), Shirley Kaufman (“Job’s Wife”), and Sherri Waas Shunfenthal (“Noah’s Wife Speaks,” “The Animals are our Friends,” “Time,” and “Arc of Peace”).https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/7/365literary midrashAmerican-Jewish poetrywomen’s poetrybiblical women charactersNoah’s wifeJob’s wife |
| spellingShingle | Anat Koplowitz-Breier Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women Religions literary midrash American-Jewish poetry women’s poetry biblical women characters Noah’s wife Job’s wife |
| title | Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women |
| title_full | Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women |
| title_fullStr | Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women |
| title_full_unstemmed | Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women |
| title_short | Commemorating the Nameless Wives of the Bible: Midrashic Poems by Contemporary American-Jewish Women |
| title_sort | commemorating the nameless wives of the bible midrashic poems by contemporary american jewish women |
| topic | literary midrash American-Jewish poetry women’s poetry biblical women characters Noah’s wife Job’s wife |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/7/365 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT anatkoplowitzbreier commemoratingthenamelesswivesofthebiblemidrashicpoemsbycontemporaryamericanjewishwomen |