Language:
English
Year of publication:
2022
Titel der Quelle:
Studies in the Masoretic Tradition of the Hebrew Bible
Angaben zur Quelle:
(2022) 329-376
Keywords:
Alshekh, Moses, Criticism and interpretation
;
Bible Criticism, interpretation, etc., Jewish Middle Ages, 600-1500
;
History
;
Hebrew language, Biblical Accents and accentuation
;
Midrash History and criticism
Abstract:
This chapter examines the history of the idea that the shapes, names, and sounds of the ṭeʿamim convey information about biblical narratives, including twists and turns in the plot, the thoughts and motivations of the characters, and the way direct speech was delivered. This exegetical technique is examined first by enquiring into its relationship with the midrashic method of deriving such information from the graphic features of the consonantal text of the Hebrew Bible. Turning to the approach of Tobias ben Eliezer, Joseph ibn Caspi, and Baḥya ben Asher, attention is focused on interpretations of unusual and irregular cantillation marks, including the shalshelet, according to the principles of derash. Finally, examples from the commentaries of Moses Alsheikh of Safed are examined to show how sixteenth-centurySephardi interpreters treated the Masoretic system of accentuation more broadly as a source of information concerning biblical narratives.
DOI:
10.11647/OBP.0330.09
URL:
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