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This volume offers a thematic study of an integral part of the Hebrew text of Esther, namely, violence. In The Dynamics of Violence and Revenge in the Hebrew Book of Esther, Francisco-Javier Ruiz-Ortiz makes the first ever monographic research on the topics of hostility and the mechanisms of revenge as expressed by the author of the Hebrew book of Esther.The present book is divided into two parts consisting of three chapters each. After an introductory chapter reviewing previous studies on the book of Esther, the author analyses the main vocabulary of violence and revenge in this biblical text before studying the narrative of Esther from the point of view of violence. The results of these two avenues of research are then applied on three pericopes which are representative of the dynamics of violence. Each of the chosen texts illustrates how violence and revenge are used by the author to express the message of survival and the importance of the Jewish people.

Violence in the Bible. --- Revenge in the Bible. --- Bible. --- Criticism, interpretation, etc. --- Bible --- Criticism, interpretation, etc --- Ester (Book of the Old Testament) --- Esther (Book of the Old Testament) --- Megilat Aḥashṿerosh --- Megilat Ester --- מגילת אסתר --- 222.8 --- 222.8 Tobie. Judith. Esther --- 222.8 Tobit. Judit. Ester. Esther --- Tobie. Judith. Esther --- Tobit. Judit. Ester. Esther --- Violence in the Bible --- Revenge in the Bible

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Using narrative devices such as allusions and free associations, multivalent expressions, and irony, the author of Esther wrote a story that is about a Jewish woman, Esther, during the time of the Persian exile of Yehudites, and the Persian king, Ahasuerus, who was in power at the time. At various junctures, the author also used secret writing, or we could say that he conveys mixed messages: one is a surface message, but another, often conflicting message lies beneath the surface. For instance, the outer portrayal of the king as one of the main protagonists is an ironic strategy used by the author to highlight the king’s impotent, indecisive, “antihero” status. He may wield authority—as symbolized by his twice-delegated signet ring—but he remains powerless. Among all the concealments in the story, the concealment of God stands out as the most prominent and influential example.A growing number of scholars regard the book of Esther as a “comic diversion,” the function and intention of which are to entertain the reader. However, Grossman is more convinced by Mikhail Bakhtin’s approach, and he labels his application of this approach to the reading of Esther as “theological carnivalesque.” Bakhtin viewed the carnival (or the carnivalesque genre) as a challenge by the masses to the governing establishment and to accepted social conventions. He described the carnival as an eruption of ever-present but suppressed popular sentiments. The connection between the story of Esther and Bakhtin’s characterization of the carnivalesque in narrative is evident especially in the book of Esther’s use of the motifs of “reversal” and “transformation.” For example, the young girl Esther is transformed from an exiled Jewess into a queen in one of the turnabouts that characterize the narrative. Many more examples are provided in this analysis of one of the Bible’s most fascinating books.

Bible. --- Ester (Book of the Old Testament) --- Esther (Book of the Old Testament) --- Megilat Aḥashṿerosh --- Megilat Ester --- מגילת אסתר --- Criticism, interpretation, etc. --- HISTORY / Ancient / General. --- Biblia. --- crítica e interpretación. --- Crítica e interpretación.

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Bible --- 222.8 --- Tobit. Judit. Ester. Esther --- Commentaries --- Bible. --- Book of Judith --- Judith (Book of the Apocrypha)

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In Esther in Diaspora, Tsaurayi Kudakwashe Mapfeka presents a new approach to the book of Esther in the Hebrew Bible. He argues that, whereas previous interpretations have emphasised an association with the Jewish festival of Purim, a theory-nuanced concept of diaspora offers the key for reading Esther. Alongside the relatively new approach of Diaspora Studies, the author makes use of the more traditional analogical reasoning, seeing parallels between the community behind Esther and the Zimbabwean diaspora community in the United Kingdom, of which he is a member. The two-fold methodological application results in an innovative and stimulating reading of the book. Overall, the book reflects a deep awareness not only of issues surrounding Esther but of the broader fields of the study of the Bible and of the ancient Near East.

Jewish diaspora --- African diaspora --- Zimbabweans --- 222.8 --- 222.8 Tobie. Judith. Esther --- 222.8 Tobit. Judit. Ester. Esther --- Tobie. Judith. Esther --- Tobit. Judit. Ester. Esther --- Black diaspora --- Diaspora, African --- Human geography --- Africans --- Rhodesians --- Ethnology --- Diaspora, Jewish --- Galuth --- Jews --- History --- Migrations --- Diaspora --- Bible. --- Ester (Book of the Old Testament) --- Esther (Book of the Old Testament) --- Megilat Aḥashṿerosh --- Megilat Ester --- מגילת אסתר --- Criticism, interpretation, etc. --- African diaspora. --- History. --- Transatlantic slave trade

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The book of Esther was a conscious reaction to much of the conventional wisdom of its day, challenging beliefs regarding the Jerusalem Temple, the land of Israel, Jewish law, and even God. Aaron Koller identifies Esther as primarily a political work, and shows that early reactions ranged from ignoring the book to 'rewriting' Esther in order to correct its perceived flaws. But few biblical books have been read in such different ways, and the vast quantity of Esther-interpretation in rabbinic literature indicates a conscious effort by the Rabbis to present Esther as a story of faith and traditionalism, and bring it into the fold of the grand biblical narrative. Koller situates Esther, and its many interpretations, within the intellectual and political contexts of Ancient Judaism, and discusses its controversial themes. His innovative line of enquiry will be of great interest to students and scholars of Bible and Jewish studies.

Rabbinical literature --- History and criticism. --- Esther, --- Ester, --- Esther --- Hadassah, --- אסתר --- אסתר, --- Istir, --- Bible. --- Ester (Book of the Old Testament) --- Esther (Book of the Old Testament) --- Megilat Aḥashṿerosh --- Megilat Ester --- מגילת אסתר --- Criticism, interpretation, etc., Jewish. --- Arts and Humanities --- Religion --- Rabbinical literature - History and criticism. --- Esther, - Queen of Persia.