E-Books →The Book of Job in Wonderland Making

Readers throughout history have long been mesmerized by Job's search for a "redeemer," a mediator that will stand between him and God. But few have noted the pervasiveness of mediation throughout the book, which opens and closes with mediatory acts. Armstrong turns attention to the mediation (and un-mediation) of Job's primary interlocutors. Like Wonderland's Queen of Hearts, God thunders into Job's life and reminds him that few mediators are willing to stand up to authority. Like the King of Hearts, Job's three friends take the side of the most powerful disputant, God. Like Wonderland's Gryphon, Elihu creates a cliffhanger before the dénouement and offers a moment of reflection. In the end, Job, like Alice, clings to his honesty and refuses to flatter authority.
Making use of philological and linguistic analysis in conversation with history's rabbis, theologians, and artists, Armstrong provides detailed readings of key poems within their literary context. These readings are then viewed through a looking-glass of comparative work, relating Job and his friends to Wonderland and other cultural touchpoints.
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