Parables in Midrash: Narrative and Exegesis in Rabbinic Literature / Edition 1

by David Stern

Overview

David Stern shows how the parable or mashal—the most distinctive type of narrative in midrash—was composed, how its symbolism works, and how it serves to convey the ideological convictions of the rabbis. He describes its relation to similar tales in other literatures, including the parables of Jesus in the New Testament and kabbalistic parables. Through its innovative approach to midrash, this study reaches beyond its particular subject, and will appeal to all readers interested in narrative and religion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780674654488
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	01/01/1994
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	364
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.85(d)

About the Author

David Stern is Harry Starr Professor of Classical and Modern Jewish and Hebrew Literature at Harvard University.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations

Note on Translations and Transliterations

Introduction

1. Composition and Exegesis

The Rabbinic Parable

Mashal, Parable, and Allegory

Mashal and Ma'aseh

The Origins of the Nimshal

The King-Mashal

Stereotyping

Eikhah Rabhah 4.11

The Mashal as Traditional Literature

From Narrative to Exegesis

The Mashal and Midrashic Hermeneutics

2. Rhetoric

The Occasions of the Mashal

Three Models for the Mashal

Meshalim of Praise and Blame

Eikhah Rabbah 3.21

3. Poetics

Theorizing Midrash

Narrative or Exegesis?

Narrative Convention and Exegetical Novelty

Gaps, Ambiguities, and Narrative Conceits

Point of View and Authorial Presence

The Implied Interpreter

Characterization

Anthropomorphism

4. Thematics

Apologetics

Polemics

Eulogy and Consolation

Complaint

Regret and Warning

5. The Mashal in Context

The Problem of Context in Midrash

The Mashal and the Homily

The Mashal and the Petihta

The Mashal and the Aggadic Narrative

The Mashal and the Exegetical Enumeration

Series of Meshalim

The Mashal in Midrash

6. The Mashal in Hebrew Literature

From the Ancient Near East to Late Antiquity

The Parables in the Synoptic Gospels

From the Tannaim to the Amoraim

Tanna de-Bei Eliyahu

Sefer Habahir

Maimonides and Other Philosophers

The Zohar and Other Mystical Texts

Modern Hebrew Literature

Appendix A: Nonparabolic Narratives in Rabbinic Literature

Appendix B: Hebrew Texts of the Meshalim from Eikhah Rabbah

Notes

What People are Saying About This

Burton L. Visotzky

One of the most sophisticated and mature works on rabbinic literature in this century...All readers will find the book an extremely valuable synthesis of cutting-edge methodologies, thorough knowledge of textual traditions, and the best exegesis of traditional literature the academy has to offer.

Editorial Reviews

Parables in Midrash is one of the most sophisticated and mature works on rabbinic literature in this century… All readers will find the book an extremely valuable synthesis of cutting-edge methodologies, thorough knowledge of textual traditions, and the best exegesis of traditional literature the academy has to offer.

Burton L. Visotzky

Stern argues persuasively that…the mashal’s narrative becomes in itself a distinctly rabbinic form of scriptural exegesis. Stern’s comparative discussions of parables ascribed to Jesus and the use of the mashal in later Hebrew literature make this book of great interest to students of New Testament, rabbinics, and literary theory.

Martin S. Jaffee

Well-written, comprehensible to the nonexpert and thorough in its description of material and in its use of modern literary criticism.

Anthony J. Saldarini

Stern argues persuasively that...the mashal's narrative becomes in itself a distinctly rabbinic form of scriptural exegesis. Stern's comparative discussions of parables ascribed to Jesus and the use of the mashal in later Hebrew literature make this book of great interest to students of New Testament, rabbinics, and literary theory.

Religious Studies Review - Martin S. Jaffee

Parables in Midrash is one of the most sophisticated and mature works on rabbinic literature in this century. . . All readers will find the book an extremely valuable synthesis of cutting-edge methodologies, thorough knowledge of textual traditions, and the best exegesis of traditional literature the academy has to offer.

Catholic Biblical Quarterly - Burton L. Visotzky

Stern argues persuasively that...the mashal's narrative becomes in itself a distinctly rabbinic form of scriptural exegesis. Stern's comparative discussions of parables ascribed to Jesus and the use of the mashal in later Hebrew literature make this book of great interest to students of New Testament, rabbinics, and literary theory.
— Martin S. Jaffee

Religious Studies Review

Well-written, comprehensible to the nonexpert and thorough in its description of material and in its use of modern literary criticism.
— Anthony J. Saldarini

Theological Studies

Parables in Midrash is one of the most sophisticated and mature works on rabbinic literature in this century. . . All readers will find the book an extremely valuable synthesis of cutting-edge methodologies, thorough knowledge of textual traditions, and the best exegesis of traditional literature the academy has to offer.
— Burton L. Visotzky

Catholic Biblical Quarterly

The first in a new series created to acknowledge the explosion of knowledge in fields related to infectious disesases and clinical microbiology. Thirteen contributions focus on organisms which are of major medical importance in this country or which have contributed to an understanding of pathology. They deal with specific types of immune defects in the compromised host and how they predispose to infection with different organisms; host defenses against intracellular protozoa using Leishmania as a model; and specific parasitic infections. Midrash--biblical interpretation as practiced by the rabbinic sages in late antiquity--is both a repository of classical Jewish tradition and a self-defining literary mode. The parable, or mashal, is the most distinctive type of narrative in midrash. Stern shows how the mashal was composed, how its symbolism works, how it serves to convey the ideological convictions of the rabbis, and how it relates to similar tales in other literatures, including the parables of Jesus in the New Testament. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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