Megilla 14 The Prophetesses

The Gemara shares many stories today, including:

• A comparison of Achashverosh's and Haman's hatred for the Jews (different problems in their fields)
• 48 prophets and 7 prophetesses told of the 613 mitzvot, but the only change to the Torah was the addition of the recitation of the Megilla
• Do we recite Hallel on Purim?  Or is the Megilla actually a form of Hallel?
• Is Hallel only sung to celebrate certain miracles?
• A review of some of the prophets
• Prooftexts for the prophetesses: Sarah, Miriam, Deborah, Hannah, Abigail, Huldah, and Esther

Each prooftext tells us in part how our Sages viewed women, particularly when women held power.  The stories are different from each other, each fascinating in its own way.  It is notable that the story of Abigail suggests a prior knowledge of the halachot regarding menstrual blood.  Because of Abigail's cunning, the rabbis suggest that women are always thinking ahead.  

Unfortunately, after sharing their respect for these prophetesses, the rabbis take a step back.  Rav Nachman suggests that it is unbefitting for a woman to be haughty, and that we know that Deborah and Huldah were both haughty.  A prooftext is provided for each of these claims.  We also learn that Deborah means hornet and Huldah means marten, both of which are "loathsome". Thus these prophetesses should have known to control their haughtiness - they already had names predicting bad behaviour.

At the very end of our daf, the rabbis argue about the lineage of our prophetesses.  Were they of pure descent?  Or perhaps were they descended of prostitutes and converts?  Ending our daf on this note leaves me to wonder that the rabbis felt it necessary to question our prophetesses.  Yes, they do question the lineage and the personal traits of men, but to do this to the only women in places of power seems almost calculated.  How uncomfortable were our Sages with the idea that a number of women held places of power?  If they left our prophetesses unquestioned, what might this have meant to the lives of the women who lived beside these rabbis? And to the rest of us, who came later?