Language:
English
Year of publication:
1999
Titel der Quelle:
Journal of English and Germanic Philology
Angaben zur Quelle:
98,3 (1999) 353-372
Keywords:
Wither, George,
;
Bible In literature
;
Bible. Versions
;
Bible. Versions
;
Christian Hebraists
;
Antisemitism History 1500-1800
Abstract:
Discusses the role of Hebrew, Judaism, and Jews in 17th-century England, focusing on how Hebrew studies shifted from a "politically, religiously, and intellectually liberating" force to a means to justify new forms of prejudice and repression. Wither (1588-1667) was famous among his contemporaries for his metrical translation of the Psalms and for his prose writings about them. Like other English Protestants of his time, he had a very ambiguous attitude towards Judaism and the Jews. He recognized the continuity between biblical Judaism and Christianity, and the importance of the former for English identity; however, he felt the need, as did the early Christians, to distance his society from Judaism and Jews. The latter factor engendered antisemitic attitudes. For Wither, the Psalms embodied this continuity and distance, which are indicated by the use of the term Old Testament for the Hebrew Bible.
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