Job's Body and the Dramatised Comedy of Moralising

This book explores the moral and social world reflected in the language and values of Job's speeches by examining the expressions used to describe his body in pain and the reactions of his friends. It demonstrates how comedy is used to reject the idea of retribution and expose the flaws in the perspective of illness as retribution. The monograph analyzes the expression of pain in Job, focusing on somatic language and comparative research from medical anthropology and sociology.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 190 pages
Publication date: 01 August 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This book delves into the profound expressions used to describe Job's body in pain, as well as the reactions of his friends, to explore the moral and social world reflected in the language and the values that their speeches betray. A significant aspect of this monograph is its ability to challenge the notion of illness as retribution, particularly through the use of comedy.

Comedy in Job emerges as a powerful tool to expose and ridicule the idea of retribution. By rejecting the traditional approach of retrospective diagnosis, this monograph meticulously analyzes the expression of pain in Job, focusing specifically on the somatic language employed in deity attack metaphors, deity surveillance metaphors, and the language associated with the body and social status. These metaphors are analyzed in a comparative manner, drawing upon research from medical anthropology and sociology, which specialize in illness narratives and expressions of pain.

Job's Body and the Dramatized Comedy of Moralizing will appeal to scholars and researchers working on the Book of Job, as well as those with a broader interest in suffering and pain within the Hebrew Bible. It offers a fresh perspective on the text, shedding light on the ways in which comedy can be used to challenge prevailing narratives and reveal the underlying moral and social dimensions of the story.

Weight: 370g
Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367533113