Jewish authors in antiquity reinterpreted biblical texts, creating a revolving stage of characters and settings. René Bloch discusses four examples of creative rewriting, from the Jewish diaspora and Palestine and situates them in their literary and historical contexts.
Jewish authors in antiquity reinterpreted biblical texts, creating a revolving stage of characters and settings. The Torah was the model for diverse interpretations of the authors' worldviews. René Bloch discusses four examples of this creative rewriting: the Jewish-Hellenistic love story of Joseph and Aseneth, the biography of Moses written by Philo of Alexandria, the Book of Biblical Antiquities by Pseudo-Philo and, from a later period, the Josippon from 10th century Italy. All of these four texts deal with biblical figures, reinterpreting and continuing their narratives. And all four works reflect a complex relationship to the non-Jewish environment, representing an authentic and confident Judaism on the one hand and all of them trying hard to connect to mainstream society on the other.
