Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Bruce Gardner <b.gardner AT abdn.ac.uk>]

Dear Folks,
              
It may not be relevant, but I see that the second century CE comentator,
Soranus, required of midwives that they be literate, as follows:

"To Soranus, the demands of the profession require a highly
competent woman; he implies that some midwives are simply unfit for their
work. 'A suitable person," Soranus writes, "will be literate,
with her wits about her, possessed of a good memory, loving work,
respectable and generally not unduly handicapped as regards her senses
[i.e., sight, smell, hearing], sound of limb,
robust, and, according to some people, endowed with long slim fingers and
short nails at her fingertips.'...Soranus argues that the best midwives
should be literate so that they can be knowledgeable about obstetrics and
pediatric theory".

From: "Rescuing Creusa: New Methodological Approaches to Women
in Antiquity," (Helios, New Series 13(2), 1986, pp. 69-84)

There is also a fourth century BCE representation of a seated woman
holding a tablet next to a scribe, however to be interpreted. 

(Farmer, Scribe, Seated Woman with Writing Tablet. Red-figure
south-Italian krater perhaps by Asteas. Not listed in ARV(2); see Bieber,
History, (1939) p. 284 fig. 383 or Pfuhl, Zeichnung und Malerei, II,
p.718 and III, p. 361 fig. 804. First half of the fourth c. bce).

I also recommend the website Diotima and the listserv Anahita. BTW, did
Sappho not write?

Bruce.


At 14:30 21/02/01, you wrote:
> > 
> > Raymond,
> > Where did I mention the song?  Please read what I actually
> wrote.
> > 
> > > We also have a female leader in Judges, to name just one
> more.
>
>
>
> Well Dave. I am not supprised by your reaction, you must have some
> twenty
> phrases of this kind as a standard format in your e-mail program. You
> even
> use them to deny the implication of your words in case this is obvious
> to
> everyone.
>
> But, I did misunderstand you? Please clarify which female leader you
> are
> referring to, and what the implication is of this reference to a
> female
> leader in a discussion on women writing if it is not Deborah and if it
> is
> not the song? I just know of one female leader in Judges and I do not
> know
> of the word "write" (ktb / spr) in connection to her.
>
> Raymond
>
>
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------------

Bruce Gardner

b.gardner AT abdn.ac.uk