Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Marks, Susan

Keywords

Job, Elihu, Humor

Area of Concentration

Religion

Abstract

Can a reader find comedy in the tragic plot of the Book of Job? This thesis explores that question by focusing on one character who, I argue, provides comedy in the form of comic relief: Elihu. The character of Elihu is important because he provides some levity amidst Job's suffering. To demonstrate this, I explore Stanley Fish's theory on reader-based interpretive strategies and interpretive communities to show how a reader is the ultimate interpretive authority. Armed with this knowledge, I show what role Elihu cannot play. This is the role of an arbiter. Finally, after showing what role he cannot play, I show how the best reading of Elihu is as a comic figure who relieves tension in the Book of Job a few chapters before God enters out of the whirlwind.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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