Countertraditions in the Bible

This book marks the much needed next step in feminist biblical criticism. -- Mieke Bal
Ilana Pardes planes the Bible’s surface to expose the lineaments that run against the grain, challenging the pat assumptions of our predecessors. Pardes focuses on the unconventional, the irregular, in Biblical literature and points up instances in which a female voice in permitted its say—until the masculine voice resumes. -- Edward L. Greenstein * Jerusalem Report *
Distinguishing herself from feminist Biblical scholars who regard the Bible as a wholly patriarchal work, Pardes sees the text itself as challenging gender distinctions… Her arguments are buttressed with an impressive command of Biblical scholarship and an awareness of the sensitive, nuanced readings to be found in Rabbinic literature. -- Yehudah Mirsky * Forward *
This lively and stimulating book probes the words and the silences of such figures as Eve, Rachel, and Zipporah, using their stories in turn to test a variety of contemporary feminist approaches to the Bible… [An] original blend of text history, feminist theory, and literary analysis. -- David Damrosch