Many books have been written about Golda Meir, the former prime minister of Israel. The Only Woman in the Room differs as it delves into the social and speculated psychological history of the third woman in the twentieth century to become a world leader.
The biography, a timeline of Meir’s life beginning as Goldie Mabovitz in Kiev, Ukraine (formerly Russia) in 1898 and ending with her death from lymphoma in Jerusalem in 1978, goes far beyond her achievements, successes, and disappointments, analyzing her thoughts and behavior. Golda became the fourth prime minister of the State of Israel, a signer of Israel Independence (one of two female signers), and founder of the State. She had a strong commitment to Labor Zionism and socialism. She put in her time, worked hard, and sacrificed much in her life to fulfill her objective, becoming an outstanding nation builder.
As a female she had to balance her act, becoming independent and strong willed at times or quiet and obedient as needed to survive, particularly when working directly with her mentor, David Ben Gurion. As the “only woman in the room,” she worked very hard and successfully, yet, as a Jewish woman, she had no problem serving coffee and cake to those she welcomed into her living room or “kitchen.” She claimed that she needed “a wife” to help her with all the things that a wife traditionally did for her husband so she could work with no worries. A wife would help take the children to the doctor or make the afternoon meal.
In a speech at the General Assembly of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds in Chicago in January 1948, Golda, the acting head of the Jewish Agency (the male leadership had been arrested by the British) expecting to raise $25 million dollars to equip the Jewish armed forces, raised $50 million. Golda delivered poignant, strong, and relevant speeches when required. She spoke a perfect English and a good Hebrew with an American accent. As was the language of most of the founders of the State, her mother tongue was Yiddish. As a result, she was emotional and joked in Yiddish.
A survivor of anti-Jewish sentiment, Golda was a warrior for the Jewish People and the Labor Zionist movement. She allied herself with working women, but did not devote herself to feminist causes. She dedicated herself to workers’ rights, forming Mapai, the Labor Zionist Political Party, and building a nation. She lived humbly and economically prudently. Even as the second foreign minister in the nascent State of Israel, she flew coach to save the State money.
Although Lahav’s interesting narrative is highly documented, it dives into Golda’s head and thought patterns. It talks of her personal romantic affairs and her approach—and then non-approach—to feminism, not making gender a theme of her life. Today the strong minded “Goldie,” one of the most respected female figures in history, would be appalled to learn that her life was examined through such a lens.
Preparing to write her memoirs in 1975, Golda told her British publisher George Weidenfeld, “I will not write about my private life. I will not settle political or other scores with anyone. I will not take advantage of the high office I have just left, or of anything I have learned there.”
Judith Friedman Rosen
CUNY Graduate School
