- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: Basic Books; Reprint edition (13 July 1983)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 046500427X
- ISBN-13: 978-0465004270
- Product Dimensions: 20.4 x 13.8 x 1.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 177,283 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Description
Product Description
In what is both a radical approach to the Bible , and a fundamental return to its narrative prose, Robert Alter reads the Old Testament with new eyesthe eyes of a literary critic. Alter takes the old yet simple step of reading the Bible as a literary creation.
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First Sentence
WHAT ROLE does literary art play in the in the shaping of biblical narrative? Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
WHAT ROLE does literary art play in the in the shaping of biblical narrative? Read the first page
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Concordance
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In "The Art of Biblical Narrative", Robert Alter sets out a manifesto for all those scholars who would read the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) in a literary-critical manner. Alter gives scholarly backing to the view that the Bible is not simply a "religious" document, but has a strongly artistic and literary dimension too. Alter outlines various artistic "conventions" employed by the authors of the Old Testament writings, which when grasped can greatly enrich an understanding of the biblical documents, for Christians, Jews and scholars alike. His close engagement with the Hebrew text, his thorough understanding of literary-critical methods and sources, and his passion for the writings of ancient Israel all make the challenge of his dense prose extremely rewarding.
I would personally recommend this text to all students of the Old Testament, as well as intellectually serious believers, at least to dip into, if not to enjoy in its entirety.
I would personally recommend this text to all students of the Old Testament, as well as intellectually serious believers, at least to dip into, if not to enjoy in its entirety.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Absolute gem of a book.
The basic premise of the book is that the biblical writers should not be assumed to be any different from modern fictional/historical authors. Such authors enjoy using thought provoking metaphors, and linguistic skills to make their work more enjoyable to the reader, and in the process more enjoyable to themselves to create (due to the creative process).
To show how this works he first talks about Prose Narrative and how all historical documents are fictional to a degree e.g. scribes did not follow King David on his journey's dictating the chronology or words he said, nor does this occur today with our world presidents. As such all narrated points should not be considered factual, but should instead be consider historical-theological - or history told to make a point.
He then suggests that the bible has type-casts in it, e.g. image of a cow boy reaching for a gun tells you you're watching a western film. He suggests that this can help understand the imagery in the bible itself.
Going back to the premise on Prose Narrative he talks about how dialogue in the bible was attempting to convey emotions and motives. A discussion is given on the historical use of repetition and why it occurs so much in the bible. Consideration is given to the characteristic denoters included within the text and what theological ideas they were trying to convey at an artistic level.
Perhaps the most important chapter is the chapter on `composite artistry' and how this worked in the bible itself. It's worth buying the book just for this chapter. The modern charge is that the bible is full of contradictions. Alter suggests that these contradictions are so obvious that they can hardly be considered neglectful chance. He suggests that each reading is meant to give you an alternative understanding of a theological point, through the eyes of a narrated history. He suggests that it is the theological point which is of importance, not keeping the events 100% accurate in their factual routes. In this respect his premise perfectly fits in with the artistic composition of books from the bible's time period, remembering that books in their modern form containing pure literal facts are a relatively new convention.
The final chapter is on how the biblical author assumed the guise of god in their narrative composition.
In total a lot can be learnt from this book. You can see why it won the National Jewish Book Award. It would greatly enhance anyone's readings of these texts and help the average reader enjoy the biblical texts from a literally artistic perspective.
In total a brilliant book for the person interested in artistic composition within the biblical narrative itself.
The basic premise of the book is that the biblical writers should not be assumed to be any different from modern fictional/historical authors. Such authors enjoy using thought provoking metaphors, and linguistic skills to make their work more enjoyable to the reader, and in the process more enjoyable to themselves to create (due to the creative process).
To show how this works he first talks about Prose Narrative and how all historical documents are fictional to a degree e.g. scribes did not follow King David on his journey's dictating the chronology or words he said, nor does this occur today with our world presidents. As such all narrated points should not be considered factual, but should instead be consider historical-theological - or history told to make a point.
He then suggests that the bible has type-casts in it, e.g. image of a cow boy reaching for a gun tells you you're watching a western film. He suggests that this can help understand the imagery in the bible itself.
Going back to the premise on Prose Narrative he talks about how dialogue in the bible was attempting to convey emotions and motives. A discussion is given on the historical use of repetition and why it occurs so much in the bible. Consideration is given to the characteristic denoters included within the text and what theological ideas they were trying to convey at an artistic level.
Perhaps the most important chapter is the chapter on `composite artistry' and how this worked in the bible itself. It's worth buying the book just for this chapter. The modern charge is that the bible is full of contradictions. Alter suggests that these contradictions are so obvious that they can hardly be considered neglectful chance. He suggests that each reading is meant to give you an alternative understanding of a theological point, through the eyes of a narrated history. He suggests that it is the theological point which is of importance, not keeping the events 100% accurate in their factual routes. In this respect his premise perfectly fits in with the artistic composition of books from the bible's time period, remembering that books in their modern form containing pure literal facts are a relatively new convention.
The final chapter is on how the biblical author assumed the guise of god in their narrative composition.
In total a lot can be learnt from this book. You can see why it won the National Jewish Book Award. It would greatly enhance anyone's readings of these texts and help the average reader enjoy the biblical texts from a literally artistic perspective.
In total a brilliant book for the person interested in artistic composition within the biblical narrative itself.
Format:Paperback
How I wish every student and preacher would read this. I endure preachers who emote, or joke, or reason, but just won't get on and tell the story!
Robert Alter is a great help to a non-Hebrew reader, shewin how words with the same root are patterned in the stories so as to get a message across withoout moralising.
And now I see similar techniques and patterns in the Gospels.
Amazing.
Robert Alter is a great help to a non-Hebrew reader, shewin how words with the same root are patterned in the stories so as to get a message across withoout moralising.
And now I see similar techniques and patterns in the Gospels.
Amazing.
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