story of Dinah and the Red Tent.
The new retelling of an Old Testament story has already caused controversy-but is it so different to the Bible story?
Dinah is only mentioned 'once' in the bible.
British historian Ralph Ellis readily admits the Bible is not short of tales of violence epic blood-shed and revenge.
It's not to hard to see, therefore, why so many of the Bible's stories have been adapted to the screen.
Hidden away in Chapter 34 of the book of Genisis, th first book of
the Old Testament, is the story of Dinah.
Just a few verses long, this chapter tells of Dinah, daughter of Jacob and sister to Joseph.
One of the shortest yet most dramatic Old Testament tales, the story of rape, murder and pillage, with family
feuds and bloody acts of revenge in.
And now it is about to hit the screens in a new mini-series with steamy flower scenes, gory murders and even baby
snatching.
The Red Tent, based on the best-selling novel by Anita Diamant, is billed as an "epic, sweeping, historical story" and boasts an all-star cast including Minnie Driver and Game of Thrones 'Iain Glen'.
It has already sparked controversy in US with religious groups claiming the story is so red-blooded that it verges
blasphemy.
The drama is based on a red tent where the women from jacob's tribe go when they're menstruating, and where
Dinah and her mother's - Jacob has at least four wives - go to seek solace, gossip and share thought and wisdom.
But given the series new retelling has already caused, is it that different to the original story?
At just thirty one verses long, after Dinah is never mentioned again, the chapter begins when Dinah, just a teenager
at the time, goes out for a walk and is raped by a local prince, Shechem.
He then decides he wants to take her as his wife too - and sends his father Hamor to negotiate a deal to marry her.
Dinah's brothers are enraged and, plotting, agree to hand her over, their younger sister - but only after every man
in Hamor's kingdom is circumcised.
Hamor agrees, and every one of his men has to out his manhood under the knife so the prince can get the girl he is lusting after.
Then, with all the kingdom's fighters incapacitated after the mass circumcision,Dinah's brothers and their soldiers
in ad to kill every man, before plundering their 'herds and donkeys" and "carry off all the wealth and all their
women and children.
It is easy to see why viewers have been - and will be- shocked, but much of the violence and drama was depicted
in the original story.
The bible is full of stories like this,it is just that priests and rabbis have cherry-picked the nice stories with a nice
"moral" lesson, so the faithful only get to hear a sugar-coated version of the Old Testament.
More info;https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinah
By Zahra Mulroy
DailyMirror
4, May 2017
