Jewish Women's Studies
Jewish Women in America: an Historical Encyclopedia, eds., Paula E. Hyman and Deborah Dash Moore (Routledge, 1998). This beautifully produced two-volume encyclopedia is the first reference work that makes women and their achievements central to an understanding of both the American and the Jewish experiences. Including both the diverse accomplishments of notable women such as Golda Meir and Fanny Brice and the day-to-day experiences of ordinary Jewish women, it is a treasure trove of fascinating information. Biographical entries explore the contributions of individual women to American society while also delving into the Jewishness of their work. Other articles investigate the pivotal role of women’s organizations and movements in shaping American Jewish life, while synthetic essays examine Jewish women’s involvement in broader cultural phenomena.
The Memoirs of Glückel of Hameln (Schocken, 1977). This superb memoir, originally written in Yiddish, acquaints the reader with the heart and mind of a 17th-century Jewish woman. Glückel began writing her life story after she was widowed at the age of 44. Married at the age of 14, she had 14 children. Learn about Glückel’s tribulations and joys as she strove to marry off her daughters, help her sons achieve financial stability and strengthen the family business in precious gems. Her descriptions of everyday life provide a priceless window into Jewish life in pre-modern Europe and reveal a proudly independent woman of keen intelligence and heartfelt piety.
Paula E. Hyman, Gender and Assimilation in Modern Jewish History (University of Washington Press, 1995). In this beautifully written volume, Paula Hyman looks at modern Jewish history from the perspective of gender. She forces us to think about how Jewish women experienced processes of modernity, such as assimilation and secularization, and how those encounters differed for women and men because of their gendered roles. By learning about how women constructed and sustained Jewish culture throughout the modern period, we gain a fascinating perspective through which to think about how contemporary Jewish women might shape the transmission of Jewish identity.
Judith Plaskow, Standing Again At Sinai (Harper & Row, 1990). This persuasively argued volume moves beyond equal-access Jewish feminism and compels us to think about the implications of feminist thought for Judaism. Plaskow argues that though Jewish women may attain equality in Jewish ritual and leadership roles, Judaism itself is based on Torah, law and liturgy that is masculine in its very essence. To truly grapple with the implications of feminism for Judaism, we must go back to Sinai and transform Judaism itself in a way that is honest both to feminism and to the Jewish past, present and future.
