Language:
English
Year of publication:
2021
Titel der Quelle:
Review of Rabbinic Judaism - Ancient, Medieval, and Modern
Angaben zur Quelle:
24,1 (2021) 56-72
Keywords:
Talmud Bavli Language, style
;
Rabbinical literature Language, style
;
Fictions (Jewish law)
;
Jewish law Methodology
;
Uncertainty (Jewish law)
Abstract:
The rabbinic idiom “for I say” (שאני אומר) has been construed philologically as a specific type of presumption, buttressed with first-person rhetoric. From the perspective of legal analysis, I contend that “for I say” and presumption are diametrically opposed decision-rules, employed consistently in tannaitic and amoraic literature. While presumptions are exclusionary rules, circumscribing doubt, “for I say” is an inclusionary rule, validating doubt. The versatility of the “for I say” rule testifies to its preliminary nature – while the outcome is determined by a robust set of primary decision rules. “For I say” should be read as: for I can say, legitimizing doubt and calling on primary rabbinic rules for treating cases of factual uncertainty, in contestable instances.
DOI:
10.1163/15700704-12341375
URL:
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