Work

Vivid Representation and Victims of Forced Displacement in Jewish Literature in Greek

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This article examines the portrayal of forced displacement in selected Greek-language Jewish prose texts. The selected narratives concern 1) the capture of slaves from Judea by Ptolemy I and their liberation by his son (Arist. 12-27); 2) Ptolemy IV’s forced mobilisation of Jews to the hippodrome of Schedia, near Alexandria (3 Macc. 4:4-11); and 3) Mary of Bethezuba, a refugee in Jerusalem during the Roman siege in 70 CE (Josephus, J.W. 6.199-219). I analyse the role of non-hegemonic social groups such as women, children, and the elderly in these narratives in terms of Greco-Roman rhetorical conventions of vivid representation (enargeia). Based on this analysis, I argue that the emphasis on these specific groups can be explained as rhetorical highlights designed to appeal to the imagination of ancient readers and listeners.

Source: NTT Journal for Theology and the Study of Religion

DOI: 10.5117/ntt2025.1.005.glas

Author: Eelco Glas

Institution: Aarhus University

Language: English

Topic: Biblical Studies and Interpretation

Subfield: Religious studies

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Funders: European Commission, H2020 European Research Council

Awards: G434337789, An Intersectional Analysis of Ancient Jewish Travel Narratives