Circle, Arrow, Spiral: Exploring Gender in Judaism

by Miriam R. Kosman

Are men and women equal in Judaism? Is equality even a Jewish goal? If it isn’t, how do we reconcile a just G-d with inequality? In a society in which it is no longer clear who brings home the dough and who bakes it, who changes the baby and who changes the tires, what does it really mean to be male or female? Should gender make any difference in our life, or should we all just do what we are good at and forget labels? These are burning questions in a society where norms are changing at a rapid clip. Beyond the great divide between the “men-and-women-are-equal-but-different” camp, and the “Judaism-is-patriarchal-and-must-change” camp, Circle, Arrow, Exploring Gender in Judaism offers a paradigm shift. Delving into the Midrashic underpinnings of the struggle for equality and its philosophical ramifications, this book explores how female angst plays a cosmic role in awakening humanity to a crucial process. In the second half of the book, the author addresses some of the thornier issues relating to men and women in Jewish law — including the marriage and divorce structure and public versus private roles — exploring them through the prism of the paradigm built in earlier chapters. Understanding this paradigm sheds light on the entire male/female dynamic and offers insight into navigating this crucial relationship in real life more successfully. This groundbreaking book peels away layers of diatribe and illuminates the power of the female force in history, in society, and in our deepest relationships. It shows how the entire universe is divided along the fault line between male and female and all of life is an eternal dance between these two forces. It is a book about who we are as human beings, as men and women — and as Jews.

Genres: Jewish, Judaism, Nonfiction

376 pages, Hardcover

First published October 20, 2014

Reviews

[Chloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super interesting

[T · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely an interesting read and showed me a new perspective of gender in judaism. I didn’t agree with everything, nor did I fully understand everything, but it was interesting and informative nonetheless. It prompted some interesting conversation conversations in my book club.

[Elsie Birnbaum · Rating 1 out of 5]

In this book, Kosman argues that women are ill suited for Talmudic study and serving as witnesses because they lack in analytical capabilities. While this is not true of all women, it is certainly true of Kosman.

The overall thesis of Circle, Arrow, Spiral rests on the idea that women are inclined towards being and men towards doing. Women are receivers and men givers. The sort of assertion that only works if you vastly devalue the entirety of women's labor. Certainly, in the traditional Jewish home, the domain of women is one of doing, of earning money and maintaining the home, and the domain of men is one of being, of prayer and study. Kosman's attributions of these traits are completely arbitrary and she does little to justify her attributions.

But even more aggravating is Kosman's belief that increasing equality between men and women is a sign of the coming messianic age, yet we are not supposed to fight for that increasing equality. Or that some men are feminine and some women are masculine, yet we are supposed to limit men and women to particular roles and spaces.

There are strong arguments for women and men's roles in Judaism but they are not found in this book.

[Liza · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author writes in metaphors most of the time so it's a guessing game to understand what the author is ever implying.