We have changed our privacy policy. In addition, we use cookies on our website for various purposes. By continuing on our website, you consent to our use of cookies. You can learn about our practices by reading our privacy policy.

The Red Tent Part Two, Chapter Eight Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • When Dinah comes home, she is all bloody and weak, so Leah thinks she is dead.
  • Spoiler: she isn't dead, so the women all wash her and try to feed her, but Dinah refuses to eat or sleep.
  • You could say Dinah is little bit salty toward her family at this point.
  • Dinah finally emerges and shouts for Jacob. He eventually shows himself to her, trembling. He pleads that he had no knowledge of Simon and Levi's plan.
  • But Dinah is not impressed. She goes on a cursing spree, cursing Jacob and all of his sons.
  • Dinah's next step would have been to go back to Shechem, where she would kill herself and be buried with Shalem.
  • The next thing we know, Dinah's giving us a bunch of "had this happened" and "had that happened" phrases.
  • So the rest of the chapter is a mix of what could have happened with what actually did happen.
  • Simon and Levi apparently sell Joseph into slavery, and Jacob changes his name to Isra'El and flees.
  • Rachel dies on the highway giving birth to Benjamin, and Jacob doesn't even give her a proper burial.
  • Reuben and Bilhah engage in sexual activity, and when Jacob finds out, he banishes Reuben and slaps Bilhah so hard that her teeth fall out. She disappears a few days later.
  • Zilpah dies of fever the day Jacob smashes the last of his father's teraphims—the one with the frog head.
  • Leah also eventually loses the use of her hands and arms. We can guess that she dies shortly thereafter.
  • Dinah makes it to Shechem, and Reuben (who was sent after her) doesn't make it in time to carry her back.