Naomi Ragen
Encyclopedia
Naomi Ragen is an American
-Israel
i author, playwright and women’s rights activist.
Ragen (née Terlinsky) was born in New York City
on July 10, 1949 and received an Orthodox Jewish education before completing a degree in literature at Brooklyn College
(1971), the same year she moved to Israel with her husband. In 1978 she received a master’s degree in literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
.
Her next novel (The Ghost of Hannah Mendes: 1998) told the story of a Sephardic family brought back from the abyss of assimilation by the spirit of their ancestor Gracia Mendes
(a true historical figure), a 16th century Portuguese
crypto-Jew who risked her life and her considerable fortune to practice her religion in secret.
Chains Around the Grass (2002) is a semi-autobiographical novel of the author’s childhood which dealt with the failure of the American dream
for her parents.
In The Covenant (2004) Ragen dealt with the contemporary theme of an ordinary family sucked into the horror of Islamic terrorism.
The Saturday Wife (2007), the story of a rabbi's wayward wife, is loosely based on Flaubert’s Madame Bovary
, and is a satire of modern Jewish Orthodoxy.
The Tenth Song (2010), is the story of a family whose life is shattered when a false accusation of terrorism is made against the father.
Women’s Minyan ran for six years in Habima (Israel's National Theatre) and has been staged in the United States, Canada
and Argentina
.
struggle through attempting to force rabbinical courts to alter traditional divorce proceedings, and by trying to prevent men from using the granting of the "Get
" as an instrument of extortion.
More recently (2006), Ragen joined several other women in petitioning the courts to force the Israeli government and public bus companies to discontinue gender separated bus lines, in which men and women sit apart. Ragen claims that she was once herself harassed after riding in the "wrong" section. The case has been slowly making its way through the court system. It should be noted that other Orthodox Jewish women are not necessarily opposed to these bus lines.
In 2010 a third American-Israeli writer, Sudi Rosengarten, filed suit against Ragen, claiming that Ragen's book The Sacrifice of Tamar which deals with a black child born to an ultra-Orthodox family as a result of a long-hidden rape of the grandmother, was based on her autobiographical short story "A Marriage Made in Heaven." Ragen has denied this allegation as well.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i author, playwright and women’s rights activist.
Ragen (née Terlinsky) was born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on July 10, 1949 and received an Orthodox Jewish education before completing a degree in literature at Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...
(1971), the same year she moved to Israel with her husband. In 1978 she received a master’s degree in literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
.
Fiction
Ragen’s first three novels, which described the lives of ultra-Orthodox Jewish women in Israel and the United States, dealt with themes that had not previously been addressed in that society's literature: wife-abuse (Jephte’s Daughter: 1989), adultery (Sotah: 1992) and rape (The Sacrifice of Tamar: 1995). Reaction to these novels in the Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox communities was mixed. Some hailed her as a pioneer who for the first time exposed and opened to public discussion problems which the communities had preferred to pretend did not exist, while others criticized her for “hanging out the dirty laundry” for everyone to see, thus embarrassing the rabbis who were believed by many to be effectively dealing with these problems “behind the scenes” and also putting “ammunition in the hands of the anti-Semites”.Her next novel (The Ghost of Hannah Mendes: 1998) told the story of a Sephardic family brought back from the abyss of assimilation by the spirit of their ancestor Gracia Mendes
Gracia Mendes Nasi
Gracia Mendes Nasi was one of the wealthiest Jewish women of Renaissance Europe. She married into the eminent international banking and finance company known as the House of Mendes...
(a true historical figure), a 16th century Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
crypto-Jew who risked her life and her considerable fortune to practice her religion in secret.
Chains Around the Grass (2002) is a semi-autobiographical novel of the author’s childhood which dealt with the failure of the American dream
American Dream
The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes a promise of the possibility of prosperity and success. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, "life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each...
for her parents.
In The Covenant (2004) Ragen dealt with the contemporary theme of an ordinary family sucked into the horror of Islamic terrorism.
The Saturday Wife (2007), the story of a rabbi's wayward wife, is loosely based on Flaubert’s Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary is Gustave Flaubert's first published novel and is considered his masterpiece. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life...
, and is a satire of modern Jewish Orthodoxy.
The Tenth Song (2010), is the story of a family whose life is shattered when a false accusation of terrorism is made against the father.
Drama
Women’s Minyan, Ragen’s 2001 play, tells the story of an ultra-Orthodox woman who, upon fleeing from her adulterous and abusive husband, finds that he has manipulated the rabbinical courts to deprive her of the right to see or speak to her twelve children. The story is based on a true incident.Women’s Minyan ran for six years in Habima (Israel's National Theatre) and has been staged in the United States, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
.
Women's rights
Ragen has long been active in the AgunahAgunah
Agunah ; literally 'anchored or chained') is a halachic term for a Jewish woman who is "chained" to her marriage. The classic case of this, is a man who has left on a journey, and has not returned, or has gone into battle and is MIA...
struggle through attempting to force rabbinical courts to alter traditional divorce proceedings, and by trying to prevent men from using the granting of the "Get
Get (divorce document)
A is a divorce document, which according to Jewish Law, must be presented by a husband to his wife to effect their divorce. The essential text of the is quite short: "You are hereby permitted to all men," i.e., the wife is no longer a married woman, and the laws of adultery no longer apply...
" as an instrument of extortion.
More recently (2006), Ragen joined several other women in petitioning the courts to force the Israeli government and public bus companies to discontinue gender separated bus lines, in which men and women sit apart. Ragen claims that she was once herself harassed after riding in the "wrong" section. The case has been slowly making its way through the court system. It should be noted that other Orthodox Jewish women are not necessarily opposed to these bus lines.
Miscellaneous
In 2007, two American-Israeli writers accused Ragen of plagiarizing their works. Ragen vehemently denies both accusations, attributing them to extortion and political agendas.In 2010 a third American-Israeli writer, Sudi Rosengarten, filed suit against Ragen, claiming that Ragen's book The Sacrifice of Tamar which deals with a black child born to an ultra-Orthodox family as a result of a long-hidden rape of the grandmother, was based on her autobiographical short story "A Marriage Made in Heaven." Ragen has denied this allegation as well.