ENG 670 The Bible as Literature
This graduate seminar is a consideration of selected books of the Bible not in terms of theological ideas but of literary themes, genres, and devices. The Bible is not an abstract catechism of rules and concepts; rather, the Bible is literature because of its focus on the human experience. It is written in many different literary forms: story, poetry, proverb, parable, letter, vision, and many others. Key books of the Old and New Testaments—including Genesis, Psalms, the Song of Songs, Ruth, Esther, the Gospels, and Revelation—are studied, focusing on such literary techniques as characterization, plot, setting, symbol, metaphor, and imagery. We will also consider the historical and cultural contexts in which the Bible was written and the influence of different translations of the Bible on interpretation and understanding.