Review of Fine, The Madwoman in the Rabbi’s Attic

BOOK REVIEW: The Madwoman in the Rabbi’s Attic: the Talmud and feminine dichotomy. 'The Madwoman in the Rabbi’s Attic' discusses the six women in the Talmud who are cited by name, and matches them with six paradigms of the female (ELLIOTT MALAMET, Jerusalem Post).

But [author Gila] Fine refuses to succumb to a surface impression, and her book’s extended argument is that although one can find ample evidence for these stereotypical depictions of women in Talmudic literature, a more careful analysis can reveal subtle reversals of these clichés and, at times, a subversive defense of female agency and ability.

Cross-file under Talmud Watch.

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