The Socio-cultural setting of Joseph and Aseneth

One conclusion concerning Joseph and Aseneth on which recent scholarly studies are in agreement is that the literary model for this fascinating work is the hellenistic romance. In both European and American analyses that assumption is evident. But since the intention of a romance has not been agreed...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kee, Howard Clark (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press 1983
In: New Testament studies
Year: 1983, Volume: 29, Issue: 3, Pages: 394-413
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Summary:One conclusion concerning Joseph and Aseneth on which recent scholarly studies are in agreement is that the literary model for this fascinating work is the hellenistic romance. In both European and American analyses that assumption is evident. But since the intention of a romance has not been agreed upon - either by literary historians in general or by biblical scholars assessing the aims of the writer of Joseph and Aseneth – the import of this judgment about the literary paradigm for our work varies widely. Burchard assumes ‘that Joseph and Aseneth was composed for Jews, both born and naturalized, including perhaps those “god-fearing” sympathizers who thought and lived Jewish, but never crossed the line formally and were seldom pressed to do so. The document reminds not only the Jews of the privileges they always enjoyed, but the converts of what they, or their forefathers, gained by crossing over to Judaism.’ This position is adopted in opposition to the notion that the work was a missionary tract, aimed at enticing non-Jews to convert.
ISSN:1469-8145
Contains:Enthalten in: New Testament studies
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/S002868850000607X