Monday, September 28, 2009
Red Tent p.147-232 Response # 1
The power of women throughout Biblical times seems very ineffective outside the realm of their domestic abilities; however, we have seen women wield great power in The Red Tent. Through their birthing of sons, their interactions and influence over their husbands, women seem to rule in their own right when of a certain age. Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob, seems to have a very insignificant role throughout the novel despite the novel revolving around her life. How does Dinah wield great power in this section of our reading? Is it surprising or difficult to believe she would have such power? How does her power change the lives of her family?
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16 comments:
Hayley McKie--
Up to this point, Dinah's role in the has been that of only a narrator conveying important events and memories to the reader. But now she is partly responsible for the deaths of many people. Simon and Levi both object to the marriage because they feel while Reuben will inherit everything they will be "shepherds, poor cousins, nobodies." (197) Their objection leads to their murder of everyone except the queen and her servant. They might have stood a chance against two men with knives except all the men were weakened also by Dinah's bride-price, the circumcisions. Dinah is inadvertently the cause of all their deaths.
Dinah also curses Jacob and everyone around him. "Jacob shall never know peace again. He will lose what he treasures and repudiate those he should embrace. He will never again find rest, and his prayers will not find the favor of his father's god....You are unclean and you are cursed." (207) And Dinah is correct in every way. Jacob becomes afraid, renaming himself "Isra'El" and renaming Rachel's son Benjamin from 'son of woe'. Jacob strikes Bilhah breaking her teeth. ("repudiate those he should embrace.") It is also interesting that each wife dies according to her persona/weakness--Rachel's child kills her, Zilpah dies when the teraphim are smashed, Leah loses ability to weave/bake, and Bilhah admits her love for Reuben. Dinah's words are almost a prophecy, which is very surprising and difficult to believe. Although throughout the story so far Dinah has had little impact, the power of her prophecy-esque words are fulfilled to torment Jacob, killing all of his wives with their own weaknesses and scattering the family.
Brendan Brits-
Dinah was never very important in The Red Tent but since womanhood, she has become a very important factor in the story. She stays behind with Rebecca to help with chores there and also she accompanies Rachel on her trips to deliver babies. All of a sudden, as a woman, she finds herself at the center point of family affairs. An example of this is how big an issue her ransom is. Jacob requires that he wait and discuss it with his sons. Before, anything involving Dinah would not have required so much thought.
Dinah exercises her new womanly power by being her own woman. She is intent on marrying Shalem, and when she cannot, she curses her father and spits in his face. She runs away after that and her family suffers because of it, with lots of people dying.
All this power Dinah has is fairly surprising. Never before had she had any influence, even with her mothers, who just valued her company rather than her opinion. When Jacob holds off on the ransom, it shows that Dinah is more important to the family than before.
Throughout the story, Dinah is a relatively minor character, one who is simply a favorite child and only daughter. But when she finally becomes a woman, her role in the family changes. She is no longer just a child, but she has the responsibilities of a woman and her mothers rely on her. It is because of this that Dinah is introduced to the city of Shechem and her future husband, Shalem in the first place, by being the only able assistant to her aunt Rachel in her midwife duties.
After marrying the prince of Shechem, Dinah causes much turmoil in her family as they debate over her dowry, bride price, and her husband and marriage in general. It tears up her family so much that, even though her father agrees to the marriage, it is only with the understanding that all of the men in the city, including the king and prince themselves, will be circumcised as he and his fathers believe. In the end, Dinah's own brothers take advantage of her husbands love of her and willingness to do anything for her and kill him and the other newly circumcised men in their weakened state after the surgery.
Simply by being a woman and in love changed Dinah's state of power. She all of a sudden had wishes that seemed absurd to her family. Just this fact gave her the power to tear her family and life as she knew it apart, for no one wanted to believe that she was no longer a child. The power to do this didn't necessarily come from herself, but from her family by trying to keep her under their control. This power gave her the ability to turn sister against brother, father against son, and husband against wife. Her power destroyed every aspect of their lives, from their wealth and status to their physical abilities and urges. Their feuds with each other brought pain and their allies with each other brought pain as well(like Bilhah and Reuben), and in the end Dinah's power gave her family no one in the world to rely on, including themselves (as Leah's last days of life and death illustrate). Essentially, simply by giving in to what she wanted and sought after in her life gave Dinah a great power over the lives of so many. It could be said that by doing "nothing" she destroyed everything for her family.
Before this point in the book the Red Tent by Anita Diamannt Dinah is still at the peak of her adolescence and has little power. She works hard all day and is needed by the mothers but has little power in decisions made within the family as she is still just a child.
However everything changes once she sees the blood on her thigh indicating it was her time of the month had arrived and more importantly womanhood had arrived. From this point both the reader and Dinah know her life is about to change. Dinah even says, “My childhood is over….I will not have to carry and fetch during the new moon anymore…….I could only be what I was….a woman” (Diamant 170). Dinah’s realization is the beginning of her new life with more power.
Dinah has finally reached adulthood and with that becomes somewhat of an assistant to Rachel in her duty as a midwife. As an assistant midwife she now has a real job in the family and through this is able to meet people and in a way have a social network and become powerful.
This is perfectly shown when the two are sent to help deliver king’s concubines baby. During this trip Dinah falls in love with her future husband prince Shalem. In the end the two have intercourse and marry. Shalem falls so in love with her that she is at a stage in her life where she wields the most power. He is willing to do anything for her and because of this his will is at her command. An example of this is he is willing to have everyone man within Shechem circumsized as long as Jacob agrees to the marriage. This new power is also shown by the envy of Simon and Levi who realize that if this deal plays out they will loose even more power as Dinah and brother Rueban would gain it. Overall at this point her power is at such a peak from this marriage that she is able to have the leaders of Shechem at her will and her two brothers envious of this power.
However it is very suprising she has such power. Men of this time period work day in and out trying to gain just a little power. Through fate she is able to within a few weeks go from a child to a princess who has the will of hundreds of people at her disposale. She also doesn’t at any time in the book want this power which is suprising because most kings and queens are power hungry and always want more. In other words Dinah would be just as happy as a wife of Shalem the shepherd then Shalem the prince. Overall it is quite difficult to believe and is suprising she has so much power because now she didn’t work extremely hard for the power, didn’t really want it, and within a matter of a few weeks went from a powerless child to one of the most powerful people in her region
As power is gained envy of others is also gained. The power Dinah in the end leads to the downfall of everyone in her family other then herself and and Joseph. The power she gains leads to the envy of her brother Simon and Levi who with so much feeling of envy kill all th men of Shechem. This then leads to her leaving her family and her family going on a crash course. Her mother becomes paralyzed, father goes mad, Rachel dies delivering a baby, Zilpah dies of fever, and Bilhah is beaten by Jacob and disapears after being caught with Rueben in an affair. Overall as Dinah gained power quickly her family lost it just as fast as many died and Jacob’s fortune and life declined immensely.
Overall in this chapter Dinah went from a child to a princess as her family went from prestigious and considered a great family of there region to a rollercoaster plunge into abandment, loss of fortune and death. Though it is suprising the Dinah who never wanted power got it it is more suprising that her gain in power led to the end for many men in Shechem and for her own family!
Overall I really liked how Hayley also brings in the fact that if it wasn’t for Dinah’s the Shechem wouldn’t have been circumsized and then killed by Simon and Levi. This was a perfect example demonstrating Dinah’s immense power and how her power led to the downfall of so many.
Andrew Stukalin Lit Studies (H)
Dinah, in this section, shows power beyond what we might have even imagined possible. She has never showed ver much power and, although we can she her emotions, I never saw anything to prepare me for her outburst. What I find most interesting is that she began somewhat meek and willing to help, with only a slight stubborness. Suddenly, there is this explosion of emotion from Dinah when she meets Shalem and through his death. I think she might get all of her power through him and through how she felt being with him (although she talked very little). This newly found power is able to curse her family, kill her mothers, destroy her father's life, and sell Joseph into slavery. What I find most interesting is that she has this enourmous amount of emotion and power, and then suddenly loses it all again in being brought to Nakht-re's house and being "not quite a servant and not quite a niece, a foreigner without language or obvious skills". She does not stand up for keeping her child as her own.
Kelsey Flaherty-
Before womanhood, Dinah was an insignificant role. Although The Red Tent is written in her perspective she was more of an observer than an active character in the beginning. Dinah simply narrarated events happenig in her surroundings and retold stories her mothers had told her. In this section however, Dinah is suddenly a powerful woman. She is told to stay with her grandmother, Rachel, and help her with her chores. This is a great honor for Dinah. She also accompanies Rachel as a midwife on her trips, showing great maturity and status. When Hamor goes to Jacob to ask for his daughter to marry his son her power is displayed by the amount of gifts Hamor brings, enough for a virgin queen. Jacobs requests further demonstrate her power, Hamor and Shalem want Dinah so bad they are willing to circumsize themselves and every men in their city in exchange for her. They agreed to worship Jacobs god as long as Shalem can be with his love. After the massacre at Dinah's new city, she curses Jacob. Dinah's curses became true, causing Jacob to go as far as changing his name to Isreal. It is suprising that Dinah would have so much power, especially because she had so little before. It is hard to believe that someone who was not even permitted to eat with the men could have any power over them. Her power changes the lives of everyone around her. After the massacre, which was caused by her brothers, and would never have happened if she had not married Shalem and had so much power, nearly all the lives of everyone close to her had changed. Jacob and his family were cursed, and her mothers would never see her again. This brought her family great pain, and resulted in severe changes in her mother's demeaners. Her husband is dead by the hand of her brothers, and she does not have her mothers to comfort her. Dinah may have more power in this section, but her life is in no way better because of it.
Danielle Barney-
This section portrayed a new empowerment of Dinah. Once she got her period it was evident that her life was going to change because she reached a new level of maturity. When Dinah first saw Shalem I thought it was just a crush and nothing was really going to happen, but then they ended up getting together. Dinah had a force over him that made Shalem do anything for her. For example when Hamor and Shalem went to Jacob to discuss the bride price, Shalem seemed that he would do anything for Dinah. On page 199 Hamor says to Jacob, "My son loves the girl. He will do anything for her, and I will do what my son wishes." Clearly Dinah has developed a power over Shalem because he will go to great lengths for her. Lastly, I agree with Hayley about the fact that Dinah was responsible for all of the character's deaths. If Dinah never had an extreme crush on Shalem and then slept with him, her family's fate would have never been doomed.
Hey Group #1 --
Some great responses and some nice use of textual evidence from some of you! I'm going to list out some interesting points I thought people made. PLEASE REMEMBER TO USE EVIDENCE IN YOUR RESPONSES AND SUMMARIZE MUCH LESS!
Some great insight into: the deaths of the mothers; the surprising nature of Dinah's sudden power; how it seems Dinah really did "nothing" but yet is the cause of so much turmoil; the comparison to how hard men have worked for power versus Dinah's sudden rise to it; the theory of gaining such power through her husband; the fact that her power doesn't improve her life; Dinah's power over her husband...
All very interesting, nice work!
A few questions to think about, though:
Why is Dinah's prophetic ability difficult to believe? Why is Dinah suddenly so powerful? What is Diamant saying about her new age?
I agree with the people above who said that a fascinating part of the section we read was the fluctuation of Dinah's temperaments. They discussed how she is a relatively mild person, has this great burst of power- then goes silent. Though it is all completely understandable, as she has been through so much, it is also rather unexpected.She gets so close to having everything she could have ever wanted- money, true love, a place to live where everyone was kind to her, but she loses it all before it even really begins as a result of Levi and Simon. Her status drops from being a potential princess to that of an awkward position in Egypt. She is a foreigner, said to be an unwed mother, forced to give up her son and share him with another 'mother'. None of this could have been easy for Dinah and in the end it takes its toll on her.
BEfore her spirit is broken though, Dinah's power in the camp rises and rises. Even from tha start, as the only daughter of Jacob, she is doted upon by all 4 of his wives. As she comes of age, she begins to receive more and more responsibilities.She is valuable- she is the only one who can help the mothers with the work- and they are growing older and older. She is the only one there for them to pass their stories down too, the only one to teach their skills too, and she also acquires a power of her own. She becomes Rachel's helper, and eventually a skilled midwife of hr own accord. This,, in a way can be seen as her most powerful influence on other people in the novel. She has the ability to deliver babies, to save the mothers' lives.
"Jacob, you sons have done murder...You have lied and connived, and your sons have murdered righteous men...You and you sons have raised up a generation of widows and orphans who will never forgive you..Jacob, shall never know peace again. He will lose what he treasures and repudiate those he should embrace. He will never again find rest, and his prayers will not find the favor of his fathers god.."In her final burst of emotion before leaving, she curses Jacob,and his sons, and these curses seem to hold true- they seem to come into fruition. She is also the cause of much debate, and indirectly the outcome of the rest of Jacob's life just by wanting to marry the prince Shalem. Had she not been Jacob's only daughter, and chosen a poorer man, no one would have cared, and her life would probably have continued much in the way that she expected it to beforehand. Jacob and his sons might not have been cursed, and they may all have lived a happier life.
Juliana Batista Period 1 Lit Studies
The previous comments made by other students really sum up the plot and show specific scenes where Dinah's new-found power is uncovered. But I am going to have to disagree with one of Andrew's points, being a woman doesn't change you, it opens up doors to get power while receiving more of a status. There was a great possibility that Dinah, when she became a woman didn't DO anything to "rock the boat" or so to say.
I believe that the opportunity that Dinah was confronted with was the major cause of her power gain. The willingness of the town of Shechem and the passion Shalem had for Dinah was unbreakable, and this show that they would of done anything for her (which indeed they did). Through her-husband-to-be, Dinah acquires the power and recognition with elaborate dowries and negotiations. If it wasn't for Hamor's commitment to his son, like when he says to jacob on page 199, "'My son loves the girl,' the king said. 'He will do anything for her, and i will do what my son wishes. Name your terms, jacob. Shechem will fufill them so that your children and my children will bring forthe new generations upon the land.'" If Hamor and Shalem had just walked away, Dinah wouldn't of wielded any great power, could of married a shepard and lived a similar life to her mothers. She certainly would become a matriarch and run a household but that power is petty to what occured in the aftermath of her marriage.
Certain events that lead up to Dinah's power are REALLY what caused the events that followed, so I wouldn't of been surprised if that never occured. You have to imagine the tween Dinah at the cusp of womanhood shy, submisive, and observant. Through the murder (committed by brother Simon and Levi) and her love for Shalem, I believe that is what shapes Dinah character as a powerful woman. A powerful woman is someone who stands up for what she believes in, is confident, and can make it throgh tough times. Her response to her family shows a rapid life change, as she scolds her father, Jacob, and runs away to attempt to end (or start) a life of her own.
This power change that occurs in "The Red Tent" molds Dinah's life to a different path, yet it is the experiences that pop up that truly shape her actions. I wouldn't of been surprised if her life's events had changed.
Dinah had an insignificant role in her own book up until when she reached womanhood. Once she had done this, she had more important roles in the tent and she could asist in births. She also has her own womenly powers that attract men, such as Shalem. This greatly affects the book and her family because if she didn't know Shalem, then his whole city would not have been killed. Plus, Dinah's brideprice included Shalem and every man in the city to get circumcised which made it easier for Simon and Levi to kill them.
Throughout the story of The Red Tent we have met a variety of different "classes" of women -- the wives of Jacob, Jacob's concubines, the only daughter, the slaves, midwives, etc. These women seem to lead lives of quiet domesticity, without too much drama or excitement. But in the section we read this week we meet Werenro, Rebecca, and Rebecca's Deborahs. How do these women differ than those we met earlier? How do the qualities of these women impact the view of women in Biblical times? Do you find yourself drawn to these characters more than those of the earlier sections? Why or why not?
Up to this point in the book the wives of Jacob, Jacobs daughter, and the concubines of Jacob all have more or less primitive jobs. The wives mainly act as housewives as they weave, cook, and take care of the children. Concubines of Jacob and slaves also have similar job titles as they have many chores per day. Even Dinah up to this point in the book does many chores like weaving and babysitting the younger children of their group of people. However all the woman are very connected through the process of birth, and doing daily activities together for the common good of their group of people. An example of this is Leah will feed other woman’s children like they are her own. An example of this is, “ Another example is Dinah babysits all different young kids from their tribe and not just her blood relatives. These acts of mutualism among the group make these woman very connected among themselves. These woman generally reflect woman of this time who did chores, served men, and lived with their husbands.
However the reader then meets Rebecca, her Deborah’s which are her servants, and Werenro her messenger. Rebecca plays a completely different role then the woman we meet earlier in the book. Rebecca only cooks for sacrifices, leaves most of her chores to the Deborah’s and her messenger Werenro. Rebecca also does not live with her husband Isaac. She is the complete opposite of the woman we have already met as she is not a housewife but a prophet. Her group of people in Werenro and the Deborah’s are very happy servants but because Rebecca has no mutualism with them and doesn’t help them with their chores they have a form of disunity. Rebecca also shows a new view of woman as she is the first we see that wields a lot of power in her area. In other words Rebecca is highly respected from many regions because she is such a great prophet. The author shows us two very different types of woman in the woman of Jacob’s tribe and Rebecca.
These new woman changed my perspective of woman of this time because I had a stereotype that woman of this time were like Leah, Bilhah, and Dinah who were interconnected through their tribe but main roles were as housewives. Rebecca on the other hand is the opposite of this biblical stereotype about woman because she has power and her main job is as a prophet and not a housewife. This new view of woman having power enlightened me to a different role of woman of this time as powerful figures in society.
I find myself more drawn to Rebecca and her Deborah’s and Werenro. The reason is it intrigues me that (even though this sounds mad) that there were woman of that Biblical time who wielded so much authority and power. Rebecca single handily changes my perspective, as people from far away lands come to see her for her prophecies. Rebecca’s power and authority is so exotic and unusual of this time that it would be interesting if the author went more in-depth in such an influential character.
Holly Bisset
While the novel does techincally revolve around Dinah's life, her significance is not present until she comes of age. I think that this was probably the case for all girls in biblical times because until they got their periods they really were of no use to anyone other than fetching water.
Once Dinah truly enters the red tent her life has changed, it has real value now. Dinah can now increase family stats through marriage as well as having sons to continue the name of Jacob through to other generations.
Also, Dinah begins to have more dreams that are supposedly predicting the future. These dreams allow her to have a greater influence among her family because they may hold a glimpse of their future.
A HUGE contributing factor to Dinah's quick rise to power is her marriage to Shalem. He's the prince of a Shechem - kinda a big deal. Upon marrying him she brings the spotlight upon her family. They now have a daughter who can sway the prince's opinion in the city and its doings.
Dinah's son Re-mose probably would have given her a larger presence back in Shechem because he's a male heir. That didn't work out because her brothers butchered the city. Even so, now that she has given birth to a son she has obtained a whole new status. Mother. In Egypt this may not have as big an impact as it would have in Shechem because Dinah is forced to share the title with Re-nefer but Dinah stills loves being able to know that there is a son of hers in the world, a continuance of her beloved Shalem.
Tim Benson-
Up to this point, Dinah has merely been a narrator and has had a pretty insignificant role in the novel. Yet she still is able to wield great power, which has a large impact on all of the people that she loves
Some power/privlages that Dinah posseses in this sections is the ability to attend the births, help her mother out with chores around the house, and very nearly the power to be a princess. When Dinah has her first period than she entered the powerfil and privlage world of womenhood. Unlike many girls of her age, in her youth, Dinah had already seen her fair share of births. But when she has a period, inna lets her go to births with her so she can master the art of being a midwife. This is a privlage for Dinah because she is beginning to contribute to her family and pleasing her mother and aunts. Also, Dinhah very nearly becomes a princess in Sechem. However, Dinahs power contributes to the death of her husband and the people of sechem. If Dinhah had not married the prince of sechem he would not be dead and her brothers would not be murderers. It was a little suprising that her brothers and her father whom had very little intrest in her pretended to protect her as soon as she got a little power. Her familys life suddenly changed from not caring about her to being her savior. Because of her marraige to the prince of sechem Simon and Levi decided to kill evreyone in shechem except for the Queen and a servant. Her familys life was changed from her power because Jacob and his sons went from being respected and idolized for there skill to being looked at as murderers causing Jacob to change his name.
Lauren Shea-
Before Dinah reached womanhood, she didn't play a major big role. When she does reach womanhood it is important because now she can join the other women in the Red Tent and she can also take on the responsibilities of a woman at that time. She could also now find a husband and expand the Jacob family.
Jacob hadn't paid any attention to Dinah pretty much before she became a woman. When Shalem's father, the king, came to talk with Jacob about a brideprice, Jacob could barely remember Dinah. This shows just how little of a role women had in the mens lives and in life at that time in general.
The new power that Dinah had now changed the lives of her family. Her marriage to Shamel really upset her family and they revolted by attacking the city and killing almost all of the men in the palace. I think that the women, Dinah's mothers, would have been happy for Dinah and that she found someone that she loved. I think they would also be happy for her that she was carrying her first child and would want to be there to help Dinah. However, since the women were inferior to the men, the women had to keep their thoughts to themselves and follow the men.
kyle vaccaro
even though Dinah is the main character of the book, she doesnt really affect the story. This is until she goes to the city and is courted by the prince. Now she has the power to bridge two familys and make jacob royalty.
Possibly her first son could be the ruler of the city. It is not surprising the Dinah gets to wield all this power. She is the perpsective of which the book is written and most have an important role eventaly. Also she is the only daughter, which would further guess she would have a role. With marrying the prince, Dinah had great power, but changed peoples lives. Rachal died in childbirth, Bilah is punished for sleeping with Remuen, Zilpahlian dies of a fever. Ths happens because they r sad that Dinah left them. Jacob must change his name, because he is credited with killing the men of the city and is shuned where he goes. Also, the men of the city and th prince are killed, becase of Dinah powerful marrige upsets simon and levi.
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