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The article titled 'Women Wrote: Glikl in Context', talks about Glikl, the only Jewish woman — one of the few early modern Jews — who left behind a full-length autobiography.
Senior Lecturer Rachel L. Greenblatt's article centers around Glikl bas Judah Leib, known since the late nineteenth century as Glückel of Hameln, who has long been celebrated as a distinctive voice in the history of Ashkenazi Jews. Glikl stands out as the only Jewish woman— one of the few early modern Jews—to have authored a full-length autobiography. Her written work stands out in this regard, and for its unmatched quality of narrative style. At the same time, characterizing Glikl as an "extraordinary" woman could pass as a distortion of history. Many women in Glikl's circles — the upper, economic and social strata of late seventeenth- and early eighteen-century German Jewry — read, wrote, conducted business, and raised families.
Professor Greenblatt's article offers an exploration of how various elements of both the form and content of Glikl's writing can be found in the work of her contemporaries.
"In the pages that follow, I compare Glikl's writing to much shorter texts by two female contemporaries, in search of shared literary territory on the one hand and the unique creative impulse on the other. This double-sided approach constitutes an attempt to cast aside contemporary lenses in order to more fully and accurately assess the variety of women's roles in early modern Ashkenaz."
Click here to view a pdf version of Professor Greenblatt's article. Files are also available for the sources in the original and in English translation.