Reading the Bible as Literature I – Biblical Narrative
Why We Need to Read and Interpret the Bible as Literature
19 Topics
The Need to Approach Any Book, Including the Bible, in Keeping with the Kind of Book It Is
Avoiding Reductionism
Meaning through Form
God’s Inspiration of the Literary Forms of the Bible
Reliving the Text
Making the Whole Bible Accessible
Everything that a Biblical Author Put into a Passage Is Important
Speaking to the Whole Person
Making the Bible a Source of Artistic Enrichment
Enjoyment of the Bible
Adding an Element of Freshness to Our Reading of the Bible
Seeing Unity in Bible Passages
Respecting Authorial Intention
Avoiding Misinterpretation
The Voice of Authentic Human Experience
Knowing What to Do with the Genres of the Bible
Seeing the Variety of Material in the Bible
Summary
Further Reading
Course Materials
Excursus: Reading the Bible as Literature – Interview Part 1
What Traits Make a Bible Passage Literature?
13 Topics
Expository Writing as a Foil to Literary Writing
The Subject of Literature: Human Experience
Recognizable Human Experience
The Permanence of Literature
Showing vs. Telling
Right Brain Discourse
Literary Genres
The Interpretation of Human Experience
Special Resources of Language
Artistry and Beauty
Archetypes
Multilayered Quality
Summary
Biblical Narrative
Introduction to Biblical Narrative
6 Topics
The Master Genre of the Bible as a Whole
The Importance of Narrative in Human Experience
The Master Story of the Bible as a Whole
Categories of Bible Stories
A Few More Foundational Principles
Summary
How Bible Stories Work
8 Topics
What Reading the Stories of the Bible Requires from Readers
The Basics of Narrative
Getting Started
The End
The Middle
The Subject of Every Story
From Story to Meaning
Summary
Excursus: Bible, Literature, and Imagination – Interview Part 2
Setting in Bible Stories
5 Topics
Defining Setting
The Pervasiveness of Setting in Stories
The Functions of Setting in a Story
Setting as the World of a Story
Rules for Analyzing Setting in Bible Stories
Characterization in Bible Stories
5 Topics
Overview of the Subject
Who or What Does the Characterizing?
How Characters Are Portrayed in Stories
The Ingredients of a Character in a Story
Tips for Analyzing Characters in a Bible Story
Excursus: Bible as Lit. in Preaching and Teaching – Interview Part 3
Plot in Bible Stories
4 Topics
Plot Structure and Unity
Plot Conflict
Plot Devices and Conventions
Summary
Hero Stories in the Bible
3 Topics
Defining the Genre of Hero Story
Applying the Definition
Analyzing Hero Stories in the Bible
Congratulations from Dr. Leland Ryken
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Excursus: Reading the Bible as Literature – Interview Part 1
Reading the Bible as Literature I – Biblical Narrative
Excursus: Reading the Bible as Literature – Interview Part 1
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