The Red Tent in Pick-a-Shelf

May 09, 2012 Lynai rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: own-a-copy

For a moment there, I was hovering between 3 and 4 stars. I'll explain later.

***UPDATE***

Would you believe that I only got my copy of this book for only P5.00? I have been seeing copies for quite some time lying around in Booksale, and not until I read the blurb, I was not that too keen in buying it too soon. However, a 5-peso book is so irresistible, and seeing that the story is actually about a Biblical character, I don’t need any second thoughts before buying it.

The Red Tent is a story of Din For a moment there, I was hovering between 3 and 4 stars. I'll explain later.

***UPDATE***

Would you believe that I only got my copy of this book for only P5.00? I have been seeing copies for quite some time lying around in Booksale, and not until I read the blurb, I was not that too keen in buying it too soon. However, a 5-peso book is so irresistible, and seeing that the story is actually about a Biblical character, I don’t need any second thoughts before buying it.

The Red Tent is a story of Dinah, the daughter of Jacob and Leah, who was raped. A very short account of “The Rape of Dinah” is mentioned in Genesis 34 of the Bible, and other than that, no other description about her life can be found. In this book, Anita Diamant attempts to give a structure to Dinah’s life aside from her being a rape victim. The book is divided into three chapters beginning with the story of her mothers, to the events that led to her rape, up to the end of her life. The Red Tent is a first-person narrative and the storyteller is Dinah herself. I am very much partial in favor of first-person narratives so reading the book through the voice of Dinah (“Dee-nah”) gives off a somewhat personal touch, as if Dinah herself is in front of me telling me the story – her story.

In college, I took up History as my major and often, my female classmates would quip: Why should it always be history? Why not herstory? Most of the history texts we studied were written by men and were therefore told through a man’s perspective, which is not unlike Biblical accounts. I see nothing wrong with it — I am not your hardcore feminist – because it gives a certain order to society. However, hearing (or studying) an account through another person’s perspective (such as a woman) makes us more objective in our view of certain things and issues. Through The Red Tent, Anita Diamant weaves a tapestry of a society told in a woman’s viewpoint. Somehow, this kind of shift in perspective is very refreshing and empowering.

What, exactly, is a red tent? In ancient days, rooms and houses consists of tents, and in this book, the red tent is a room where the women gather every time they have their monthly periods – menstruation – and where men are strictly prohibited to enter. Through the red tent, women forged friendships and alliances, and where entirely female stuff, such as childbirth and menstruation, are greeted with appropriate traditions.

I would like to point out that The Red Tent is not midrash – Anita Diamant herself clarified this – so it must not be considered as an attempt to fill in the gaps left out by the biblical accounts. This is entirely fiction, though at the beginning, I must admit that I had a bit of difficulty in taking in the different view told in the story than that in the Bible. For one, Jacob’s wives, Leah and Rachel, were identified as polytheistic. For two, Jacob was described as hot tempered and irresponsible. And lastly, the apparent “rape” of Dinah was given a romantic twist. But then again, when I finally convinced myself that The Red Tent is not an accurate Biblical account but is merely about speculations and conjectures of what life might have been for Dinah, and for women for that matter, during ancient times, I began to enjoy the book as it is – purely fiction.

The Red Tent is one interesting depiction of herstory and for that I give my affirmation.

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1 like · Like · see review

Dec 06, 2008 Abbyb1 rated it it was amazing

Fabulous! Bring back the red tent! Another tale of women uniting as a strong front against men who are trying to manipulate/lord over them. I'm not a rabid feminist, but I truly enjoyed the concept, the story and the writing of this book. ...more

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Nov 30, 2008 Tamela Rich rated it it was amazing

Imaginative re-telling of an ancient tale. Fabulous in every way.

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Nov 28, 2010 Bea rated it liked it · review of another edition

This is a story of Dinah, daughter of Jacob. Her story is barely mentioned in the Bible. where she is but a small adjunct to the larger story of Jacob/Israel. Ms. Diamant has imagined a broader story of Dinah and interwoven her story with elements from the Bible. It is interesting in the description of the life of the women in that time, but the story did not grip me until I reached the third part - Egypt. Here the life of Dinah became compelling with love and friendship and purpose.

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