The Rebel / Deborah Feldman Deborah Feldman was born in the ultra-Orthodox community of the Satmar Chasidism to a mother who abandoned her when she was a toddler and a mentally retarded father. Her grandparents raised her according to all the strict rules, and above all: don't ask questions and don't read secular books. But the curious girl read books in secret and dared to dream of a different life. The rising tension between Deborah's passions and her duties as a loyal satmar daughter exploded when, at the age of 17, she married a young man she had met for only 30 minutes before the marriage, and had difficulty allowing full sexual relations as is customary after the wedding. Her relatives on both sides publicly blamed and shamed her, and she found herself trapped in a sexually and emotionally failing marriage. But her spirit did not fall. She secretly enrolled in literature studies at the academy, and when she gave birth to a child at the age of 19, she realized that not only her future was at stake, but also the future of her son, and despite all the obstacles, she divorced her husband, left the community, and today lives in New York with her son and learns more and more about The books she always dreamed of. In the book The Rebellious, 25-year-old Deborah Feldman unfolds her personal story with a frankness full of emotion, and spares no details and descriptions, including the involvement of her family members in her life since childhood, the daunting mikvah experience, and the difficulties of the sexual relationship with her husband. Her fascinating story raises the image of a brave and wise young woman and allows a rare glimpse into the life of the closed ultra-Orthodox community.
