First Impressions

Just a quick introduction - this is the second blog that I have ever written. I started my first blog last year, during my AP Language and Composition class, and it was about a nonfiction book called Race. This year, in my AP Literature and Composition class, I have the exciting opportunity to now blog about a fiction book. Fiction is more my thing than nonfiction is, so I'm looking forward to being able to read a fiction book for this assignment. The book that I'll be reading over the next month is called The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. It from the point of view the daughter of Jacob, Dinah, and it is essentially the retelling Bible stories from the female point of view.

(I took this photo of my book, so don't worry, I don't need any citations!)

Immediately at the beginning of the novel, there is a prologue where Dinah addresses the reader. This is an interesting stylistic choice because I feel as though most books do not break the fourth wall and address the readers. Although it is unexpected, I really liked this choice because I immediately felt a connection with Dinah. She seems very pleased that I, along with the other readers of the book, have come to hear the stories that she has to tell: "I am so grateful that you have come. I will pour out everything inside me so that you may leave this table satisfied and fortified" (Diamant 3). I really enjoy feeling as though she wants me to know her stories and is very grateful that I have decided to read them. It makes me like her right away.

After the prologue, the stories start with Dinah's mothers' (her mothers being her actual mother and her mother's sisters) stories still told from the point of view of Dinah, because her mothers passed them down to her when she was younger. I have really enjoyed this book so far because of the descriptions of all the characters in Dinah's mothers' stories. She describes each of her mother's sisters in great detail: "Rachel's beauty was rare and arresting. Her brown hair shaded to bronze, and her skin was golden, honeyed, perfect. In that amber setting, her eyes were surprisingly dark, not merely dark brown but black as polished obsidian or the depth of a well" (Diamant 8-9). Diamant makes it very easy to picture all of the women in the novel because of the descriptions like the one of Rachel. The imagery in the novel feels very whimsical to me, especially because of comparisons to the moon, the sun, and other things such as obsidian. The imagery makes the novel really fun to read, and I especially enjoy how whimsical it all seems.

In addition, just in the first couple of chapters, I have noticed a motif/symbolism of the color red and blood. Much like in The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, red in this novel seems to symbolize fertility or the lack of fertility, depending on the situation. The red tent is where the women go when they have their periods, which means that they are fertile. In Rachel's case, the blood to her symbolizes miscarriage and a lack of fertility. For her, "the bloody flood washed away her hopes" of having a child (Diamant 46). Eventually, though, the blood comes to symbolize the birth of her first child, which shows that she is fertile again: "there was bleeding long before [her son] appeared" (Diamant 70). I am interested to see how the motif of red and blood continues throughout the book.

Before I wrap up, there is one more thing I want to discuss. I know that I've already written more than anyone wants to read, but I want to finish with a thought that I had while reading. Often in class, we discuss how reliable a narrator is. Because this novel is from the point of view of Dinah and she tells stories that her mothers have passed down to her, I wonder if there are any details that she has left out, not necessarily purposefully, but just because her mothers forgot something or she has forgotten some details of the story. I don't get the feeling that she would purposely leave anything out, but I do wonder if anything is missing.

So far, I have really enjoyed The Red Tent. I really like the stylistic choices that Diamant has made, especially the use of imagery. I look forward to seeing how the stories continue and am excited to read Dinah's stories, which is the next section of the novel.