Reading for Monday, September 23, on women's lives in the Ashkenazic world
Both articles are on Sakai-
Rosman, "Gender roles in Ashkenaz"
"Glückel of Hameln"
Questions on Rosman
1. What were the two spheres of men’s and women’s lives in the Ashkenazic world?
2. How did women act on their religious commitments differently than men? What was their relationship to the synagogue?
3. What were the foci of traditional women’s religious lives in Ashkenazic world, especially in Poland?
4. What were the tkhines and what concerns of women did they respond to?
5. What new ideas about women’s religious roles began to emerge with the rise of printing? See Isaac ben Aaron of Prostitz’s criticism of the traditional view of women (p. 558).
6. How were women’s changing religious roles reflected in changes in synagogue architecture?
Questions on Glückel
Glückel of Hameln was a Jewish woman who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. She was married for many years to a man whom she loved deeply, and they had 12 children. When he died she took over his business. She is exceptional in that she wrote a diary, which was published in Yiddish and then in English translation. Her diary tells both of the events of the day and what was going on in her personal life. The selections available on Sakai tell of her reactions to Shabbetai Zevi, the death of one child, the marriage of another, and the death of her beloved husband Haim.
1. How did she react to Shabbetai Zevi? Do you think that she believed he was the Messiah?
2. How was the marriage of her daughter Zipporah arranged? From reading her account, what can you tell of the social circles that she was a part of? Who attended the wedding?
3. What does her account of her husband's death reveal of her feelings about him and their marriage?
Questions on Rosman
ReplyDelete1. The two spheres were gender controlled: the men ruled the synagogue and communal institutions and the women ruled the house and family life. As the article mentions, if a family owned a shop, the woman would sell the customer interactions and the man would handle the finances and stock. It was the same with taverns: if a family leased a tavern, the woman would tend to the guests meals and room comfort, and the man would make sure there was enough food and there was enough income to resupply when needed. For extra money, the woman would lend money to those who needed it, but the man took no part in this. He would sell things. The gender roles were very distinct. The down side for the women, even though they essentially ran half the business, they were given no official titles or community recognition.
Question on Gluckel
1. Gluckel responded to Shabbetai Zevi in a less than devoted manner. She acted as if she believed he was the messiah and yet, she did not sell her land and pack her suitcase as if ready to leave once the call to return to the holy land came. She says that she never saw or believed what she heard others claim about Zevi. Many of her neighbors and relatives packed and departed and even sent her food for if she happened to receive word to return to Israel, but she never did anything but stay at home and let the food sit in its packaging. I am fairly certain that Gluckel did not believe that Zevi was the messiah. She did nothing to prepare in hopes for a return to Israel. She even asked God for forgiveness when she did not follow Zevi and the others.
How were women’s changing religious roles reflected in changes in synagogue architecture?
ReplyDeleteWomen’s changing religious roles were reflected in the new synagogue architecture because now there were finally designated women’s sections in synagogues. Previously, the women had been confined to annexes, cellars, or some other type of area. Women were able to become a part of the synagogue, as opposed to just being outsiders. There was also more female prayer in the synagogue.
How did women act on their religious commitments differently than men? What was their relationship to the synagogue?
Women were merely religious facilitators. They were looked at as helpers to their sons and husband. Women did not go to synagogue, nor did they have much of their own connection to God. Everything they did revolved around being submissive to the religious male figures. Women would study Yiddish texts at home on Saturday afternoons. Women’s study was considered an act of piety and wasn’t recognized as an act of study at all. Women only went to synagogue on holidays or Shabbat. The three female mitzvot were: making challah, hadlakat neirot- the lighting of the candles before holidays or Shabbat, and niddah- purification after menstruation. Aside from these three mitzot, women didn’t have much involvement in religious life.
-Hannah Wolinsky
What were the two spheres of men and women’s lives in the Ashkenazic world?
ReplyDeleteThe men were involved in the more public sphere of society. They were in charge of the Synagogue and maintained the top positions. They were also in charge of other community establishments and ran most of the businesses. Women were part of a typical female role for the time; they maintained the home and were in charge of the children and the family as a whole. Although, women did have a presence in the market place because they were responsible for feeding the family.
The male dominated the husband-wife relationship. It was not total control, there was some form of partnership, but overall the husband was in charge. Azhkenazic men went through intense rabbinical studies, which established them as superior to women in society. Men were supposed to peruse rabbinical studies or legitimate business, but the women were just seen as a supporter to the husband and children.
2. What does her account of her husband's death reveal of her feelings about him and their marriage?
Gluckel is devastated over the death of Haim of Hameln. She writes, “I truly believe I shall never cease from mourning my dear friend.” She is also expresses her dismay over her twelve children losing their father. She basically says she has lost her everything, showing that her entire life was based around him. She greatly valued their marriage cause that’s all she really knew for so long. She does attribute God to her cooping ability, “But in His mercy the great and good God at length brought me patience so that I have taken care of my fatherless children as far as a weak woman can, bowed with affliction and woe.”
Joey Randazzo
2. How did women act on their religious commitments differently than men? What was their relationship to the synagogue?
ReplyDeleteMen- Men's soul purpose was to study the Siddur, humash, Mishnah, Talmud, and later on the Kabbalah based literature. From a small age they went to heder which prepared him to participate in public services. He would then have to become fluent in Hebrew to become a functioning part of the worship service. The men's main purpose was to become a learned and religiously educated man of society.
Women- Women had a different role than men did. Women learned Yiddish not Hebrew, because Yiddish was the main language they used for self help religious books. Sometimes there was a short enrollment in heder to learn the phonetics of Hebrew to help their son's study. Women were mostly in the home, cleaning, cooking and knitting. Their connection to G-d was personal and exclusive, while they created an environment that helped their husband and sons to reach their full religious experience. Women were only seen in the Synagogue on the Sabbath or during religious holidays while men were there everyday.
3. What does her account of her husband's death reveal of her feelings about him and their marriage?
Gluckel is destroyed over the death of her husband, who was also her best friend. With his passing it felt like she had lost both. "I sat upon the ground for the seven days of mourning, and a sad sight it must have been to see me sitting thus with my twelve fatherless children by my side." She was so overcome by grief that she couldn't pick herself up from the ground. She was blessed to have such a loving relationship for Thirty years and 12 beautiful children. It seems to me they truly loved each other.