Miriam’s Song

Eleanor Wilner

1986

Death to the first-born sons, always—

the first fruits to the gods of men.

She had not meant it so, standing in the reeds

back then, the current tugging at her skirt

like hands, she had only meant to save

her little brother, Moses,

red-faced with rage when he was given

to the river. The long curve of the Nile

would keep their line, the promised…

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From the Curator

One of the challenges of making the Passover celebration relevant to contemporary egalitarian gender norms is the focus on male characters in the Exodus story. Moses’ sister Miriam stands out as an important exception that recent interpreters have embraced to expand the place of women in this central Jewish narrative. This poem turns to Miriam but adds an important note of caution: the focus on female figures primarily because of their role in supporting important men (Moses, in this case) risks erasing the experience of the women themselves. In this poem, Wilner seeks instead to normalize Miriam as a woman acting as an individual rather than as part of a national narrative.

Discussion Questions

Can you think of historical examples of women remembered for contributions distinct from their connections to important male figures?
Why do you think an artist or writer committed to including diverse gender perspectives would interpret Miriam as a sister rather than a heroine?
What might the poem mean by the line “She [Miriam] went […] to leave one rule for another, one Egypt for the next.”

Creator Bio

Eleanor Wilner

b. 1937

Poet Eleanor Wilner was born in Cleveland and studied at Goucher College and Johns Hopkins University. Active in civil rights and peace movements, she has written poems that reflect her views on feminism, justice, the environment, and war. A poet in residence at numerous universities, Wilner teaches in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina. She received a fellowship from the MacArthur Foundation, the Juniper Prize, and two Pushcart Prizes.

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Miriam’s Song

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Miriam’s Song

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