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Bees, Wasps, and Weasels

Zoomorphic Slurs and the Delegitimation of Deborah and Huldah in the Babylonian Talmud

Bees, Wasps, and Weasels cover

Bees, Wasps, and Weasels

Zoomorphic Slurs and the Delegitimation of Deborah and Huldah in the Babylonian Talmud

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Description

In this book, Blaženka Scheuer explores the zoomorphic content of Zibburta (bee/wasp) and Karkušta (weasel)—demeaning names given by R. Na?man of b. Meg 14b to Deborah and Huldah, two distinguished prophets of the Hebrew Bible. Looking closely at relevant texts, she explores ancient beliefs about bees, wasps, and weasels, recounting a variety of key literary and visual motifs that highlight the different attributes of these animals. Scheuer demonstrates the multiple ways in which zoomorphic images were used as interpretative keys both in the formation of Deborah and Huldah stories in the Hebrew Bible and in their subsequent versions. In a constant process of interaction with their cultural contexts, such zoomorphism represents an attempt to define the rabbinic beliefs about the role of women in Jewish tradition but also about the nature of God. Scheuer argues that the symbolic association of bees and weasels with asexual conception and birth also made the zoomorphic slurs about Deborah and Huldah effective as an argument against the doctrine of virgin birth in early Christianity. Emphasizing the foundational process of constant negotiation of traditions and textual interpretations, Scheuer exposes the culturally rich and religiously competitive world in which the biblical texts were transmitted.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Chapter One: Deborah, Huldah, and the Formation of Zoomorphic Slurs

Part One: Deborah

Chapter Two: Deborah: A Bee or a Wasp?
Chapter Three: Deborah in the Jewish Diaspora
Chapter Four: Deborah and the Question of a Female Divine

Part Two: Huldah

Chapter Five: Huldah: A Weasel-Prophetess
Chapter Six: Huldah and the Question of Interpretive Authority

Part Three: Deborah, Huldah, and Virgin Mary

Chapter Seven: Deborah, Huldah, and the Virgin Mary
Chapter Eight: Concluding Remarks

Product details

Published Aug 08 2023
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 232
ISBN 9781978714526
Imprint Fortress Academic
Illustrations 11 b/w photos;
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

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