Since the advent of ordered civilization, patriarchal rule has maintained dominion over the kingdoms of men. Women have had as many influential, inspiring and imperative stories to tell as men, yet their voices have been marginalized, overlooked, inequitably subjugated and bound by the ineffable chains of slavery for centuries. All it takes is a superficial knowledge of biblical history to immediately recognize the humble condition of women in the ancient Jewish world. There is no better source in all of literature on patriarchy and the proscriptive treatment of women than the Old Testament. You cannot, however, ignore the stories of Delilah, Sarah, Jezebel, and, perhaps most interestingly, Dinah. Anita Diamant, a contemporary chronicler of the Jewish tradition and a seminal figure in modern historical fiction, expressed the sorrows and voicelessness experienced by Old Testament women in her novelistic midrash entitled The Red Tent. Told from Dinah's point of view, Diamant's novel presents a feminist interpretation and retelling of the story of Dinah, her mothers, and her sisters. Dinah's life in the Book of Genesis is relegated to a few ambiguous sentences, since she was a woman and the main authors of the Bible were men with their own bigoted agendas. If Dinah had been given the opportunity to share her story, trials, tribulations, and real-life experiences, her account would no doubt have been different than what is commonly accepted. As evidenced by the stories of Dinah, Mary Magdalene, and a large number of marginalized genders, religions, and ethnic groups, those who hold power write history, eclipsing the perspectives of the powerless, the weak, and the oppressed… paper… rejudice." Although the ink is indelible and irreversible, it can be allowed to fade into obscurity by re-examining history from a variety of different and contradictory perspectives. Re-evaluating history from an alternative perspective is profoundly important, because Restoring the voice of the oppressed, the marginalized and subjugated means giving them new life. Works Cited Diamant, Anita The Red Tent New York: Wyatt Book for St. Martin's, 1997. Print. King James Bible: Oxford Univ., 2010. Print.Van Biema, David " Mary Magdalene: Saint or Sinner?" Time Magazine, 5 August 2003. Web. 28 September 2011. .Levertov, Denise. "All poetry. Poetry Foundation, 20 August 1996. Web. 28 September. 2011. .