Persuasion and Force in 4 Maccabees: Appropriating a Political Dialectic
The present study explores the themes of persuasion and force in Greco-Roman political thought and their appropriation in 4 Maccabees. I argue that among Greco-Roman political writers, stretching from Plato to Plutarch, the problem of balancing persuasion and force and their relationship to civic vi...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
2017
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| In: |
Journal for the study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman period
Year: 2017, Volume: 48, Issue: 1, Pages: 92-112 |
| Further subjects: | B
4 Maccabees
early Judaism
Greco-Roman political philosophy
persuasion
force
constitution
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | The present study explores the themes of persuasion and force in Greco-Roman political thought and their appropriation in 4 Maccabees. I argue that among Greco-Roman political writers, stretching from Plato to Plutarch, the problem of balancing persuasion and force and their relationship to civic virtues cut to the heart of the varied constitutional theories and proposals. While persuasion was preferred in ideal situations, force was recognized to be an important corollary for the masses (§1). Turning to 4 Maccabees, a good example of the Jewish appropriation of the dominant political philosophy, I demonstrate that the political persuasion/force dynamic is foundational both to the philosophical prologue and the martyr narrative (§2). |
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| ISSN: | 1570-0631 |
| Contains: | In: Journal for the study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman period
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15700631-12341137 |