The Only Woman in the Room : Golda Meir and Her Path to Power

Pnina Lahav

ISBN 10: 0691201749 / ISBN 13: 9780691201740

Published by Princeton University Press Sep 2022, 2022

About this Item

Neuware - A feminist biography of the only woman to become prime minister of IsraelIn this authoritative and empathetic biography, Pnina Lahav reexamines the life of Golda Meir (1898 1978) through a feminist lens, focusing on her recurring role as a woman standing alone among men. The Only Woman in the Room is the first book to contend with Meir s full identity as a woman, Jew, Zionist leader, and one of the founders of Israel, providing a richer portrait of her persona and legacy.Meir, Lahav shows, deftly deflected misogyny as she traveled the path to becoming Israel s fourth, and only female, prime minister, from 1969 to 1974. Lahav revisits the youthful encounters that forged Meir s passion for socialist Zionism and reassesses her decision to separate from her husband and leave her children in the care of others. Enduring humiliation and derision from her colleagues, Meir nevertheless led in establishing Israel as a welfare state where social security, workers rights, and maternity leave became law. Lahav looks at the challenges that beset Meir s premiership, particularly the disastrous Yom Kippur War, which led to her resignation and withdrawal from politics, as well as Meir s bitter duel with feminist and civil rights leader Shulamit Aloni, Meir s complex relationship with the Israeli and American feminist movements, and the politics that led her to distance herself from feminism altogether.Exploring the tensions between Meir s personal and political identities, The Only Woman in the Room provides a groundbreaking new account of Meir s life while also illuminating the difficulties all women face as they try to ascend in male-dominated fields.

Seller Inventory # 9780691201740

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Only Woman in the Room : Golda Meir and Her Path to Power
• Publisher: Princeton University Press Sep 2022
• Publication Date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0691201749
• ISBN 13: 9780691201740
• Binding: Buch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 239W x 157H x 30D millimeters 239 millimeters width by 157 millimeters height by 30 millimeters depth
• Weight: 670 grams

About this title

Synopsis

A feminist biography of the only woman to become prime minister of Israel

In this authoritative and empathetic biography, Pnina Lahav reexamines the life of Golda Meir (1898–1978) through a feminist lens, focusing on her recurring role as a woman standing alone among men. The Only Woman in the Room is the first book to contend with Meir’s full identity as a woman, Jew, Zionist leader, and one of the founders of Israel, providing a richer portrait of her persona and legacy.

Meir, Lahav shows, deftly deflected misogyny as she traveled the path to becoming Israel’s fourth, and only female, prime minister, from 1969 to 1974. Lahav revisits the youthful encounters that forged Meir’s passion for socialist Zionism and reassesses her decision to separate from her husband and leave her children in the care of others. Enduring humiliation and derision from her colleagues, Meir nevertheless led in establishing Israel as a welfare state where social security, workers’ rights, and maternity leave became law. Lahav looks at the challenges that beset Meir’s premiership, particularly the disastrous Yom Kippur War, which led to her resignation and withdrawal from politics, as well as Meir’s bitter duel with feminist and civil rights leader Shulamit Aloni, Meir’s complex relationship with the Israeli and American feminist movements, and the politics that led her to distance herself from feminism altogether.

Exploring the tensions between Meir’s personal and political identities, The Only Woman in the Room provides a groundbreaking new account of Meir’s life while also illuminating the difficulties all women face as they try to ascend in male-dominated fields.

About the Author

Pnina Lahav is emerita professor of law and a member of the Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies at Boston University. She is the author of the award-winning Judgment in Jerusalem: Chief Justice Simon Agranat and the Zionist Century.