The Encroaching Desert: Literary Production and Ascetic Space in Early Christian Egypt

The desert hermit dominates the literary landscape of early Egyptian monasticism. A careful review of the sources, however, suggests that this dominance is to a large degree literary. While ascetics continued to ply their trade throughout Egypt, it was the withdrawal of some to the desert that suppl...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Goehring, James E. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press 1993
In: Journal of early Christian studies
Year: 1993, Volume: 1, Issue: 3, Pages: 281-296
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
Description
Summary:The desert hermit dominates the literary landscape of early Egyptian monasticism. A careful review of the sources, however, suggests that this dominance is to a large degree literary. While ascetics continued to ply their trade throughout Egypt, it was the withdrawal of some to the desert that supplied the metaphor required for the literary telling of the story. The success of the story, rather than the dominance of the practice, established the desert hermit as the literary icon of early Egyptian monasticism.
ISSN:1086-3184
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of early Christian studies
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1353/earl.0.0106