Throughout the religious history of American feminism, Jewish feminist biblical interpretation shifted attention away from Eve as a viable example of women's identities. Instead, Lilith, the independent, \"demon\" and \"first wife\" of Adam is praised as a symbol of female sexuality for \"Transformationist\" Jewish feminists. Re-claiming Lilith as the \"first Eve,\" \"Transformationist\" Jewish feminists turn scripture on its head. Eve's creation and her actions in Genesis are interpreted as a product of patriarchy and male dominance, while Lilith in the midrashic narrative, the Alphabet of Ben Sira, is used by Jewish feminists to reclaim their identities on religious and spiritual levels.
This thesis explores the history of \"Transformationist\" Jewish feminism to understand the methods by which scripture is interpreted, and ultimately arrive at new working interpretations of Genesis 1-3 andThe Alphabet of Ben Sira. This thesis' significance lies in an exploration of Jewish feminism's ability to cross religious and gender boundaries.
","abstract_html":"<p>Throughout the religious history of American feminism, Jewish feminist biblical interpretation shifted attention away from Eve as a viable example of women's identities. Instead, Lilith, the independent, "demon" and "first wife" of Adam is praised as a symbol of female sexuality for "Transformationist" Jewish feminists. Re-claiming Lilith as the "first Eve," "Transformationist" Jewish feminists turn scripture on its head. Eve's creation and her actions in Genesis are interpreted as a product of patriarchy and male dominance, while Lilith in the midrashic narrative, the <em>Alphabet of Ben Sira</em>, is used by Jewish feminists to reclaim their identities on religious and spiritual levels.</p> <p>This thesis explores the history of "Transformationist" Jewish feminism to understand the methods by which scripture is interpreted, and ultimately arrive at new working interpretations of Genesis 1-3 and<em>The Alphabet of Ben Sira</em>. This thesis' significance lies in an exploration of Jewish feminism's ability to cross religious and gender boundaries.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Carvalho, Diana"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.A.","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Gregory Robbins, Ph.D.","Alison Schofield, Ph.D.","Sarah Pessin"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2009,"date_issued":"2009-06-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2009-06-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:02:38Z","subjects":["Eve","Feminism","Genesis","Jewish","Lilith","Jewish Studies","Women's Studies"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/115","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Gregory Robbins, Ph.D.","Alison Schofield, Ph.D.","Sarah Pessin"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Carvalho, Diana"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2001-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.A."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Eve","Feminism","Genesis","Jewish","Lilith","Jewish Studies","Women's Studies"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
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This thesis explores the history of \"Transformationist\" Jewish feminism to understand the methods by which scripture is interpreted, and ultimately arrive at new working interpretations of Genesis 1-3 andThe Alphabet of Ben Sira. This thesis' significance lies in an exploration of Jewish feminism's ability to cross religious and gender boundaries.
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This thesis explores the history of \"Transformationist\" Jewish feminism to understand the methods by which scripture is interpreted, and ultimately arrive at new working interpretations of Genesis 1-3 andThe Alphabet of Ben Sira. This thesis' significance lies in an exploration of Jewish feminism's ability to cross religious and gender boundaries.
"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/115"],"dc:language":["en"],"dc:rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
"],"dc:subject":["Eve","Feminism","Genesis","Jewish","Lilith","Jewish Studies","Women's Studies"],"dc:title":["Woman Has Two Faces: Re-Examining Eve and Lilith in Jewish Feminist Thought"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.A."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:02:38Z"}