Language:
English
Year of publication:
1990
Titel der Quelle:
Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
Angaben zur Quelle:
47 (1990) 15-31
Keywords:
Bible. Criticism, interpretation, etc.
Abstract:
Analyzes the biblical story of Esther as a literary work whose narrative hangs on ironic reversals. The ironies represent a model for Jewish survival in the diaspora and the writer's fundamentally ironic view of Jewish-Gentile relations. The potential genocide of the powerless Jews of the Persian Empire is contrasted with the actual survival of the powerful Jews of the Persian court - Esther and Mordekhai. Discusses the ironies in the story, the ethical issues of the Jews' massacre of the Persians (who were not committed Jew-haters) and Jewish self-criticism, and themes of Jewish self-defense and Jewish-Gentile relations. Contends that the text postulates the possibility of surviving in the diaspora with dual loyalties and with the ambivalent feelings of Jewish solidarity and self-criticism - assimilation and Jewish identification.
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