Rewriting Masculinity

Gideon, Men, and Might

Kelly J. Murphy

First in-depth study of the story of Gideon that combines masculinity studies, redaction criticism, and reception history
Traces redaction and rewriting in biblical texts as a means of tracing changing ideologies about gender, specifically masculinity
Shows how the story of Gideon is rewritten to address the gendered expectations or norms of its later interpreters

Rewriting Masculinity

Gideon, Men, and Might

Kelly J. Murphy

Description

Who is the biblical Gideon? A mighty warrior, or a fearful son? Hesitant solider, clever tactician, commanding father, ruthless killer, idolater, or illegitimate king?

Gideon has long challenged readers of the book of Judges. How did so many conflicting portraits become inscribed in our biblical text and its reception? What might these portraits tell us about the authors, editors, and interpreters of Gideon's story-especially their expectations for men?

Rewriting Masculinity interweaves redaction criticism, reception history, and masculinity studies to explore how Gideon's image changes from a mighty warrior to a weakling, from a successful leader to a man who led Israel astray. Kelly J. Murphy first considers the ways that older traditions about Gideon were rewritten throughout ancient Israel's history, sometimes in order to align the story of Gideon with new ideas about what it meant to act like a man. At other times, she shows that the story of Gideon was used to explain why older standards of masculinity no longer worked in new contexts. Murphy then traces how some later interpreters, from the ancient to the contemporary, continually rewrote Gideon in light of their own models for men, might, and masculinity.

Murphy offers an in-depth case study of how a biblical text was continuously updated. Emphasizing the importance of reading biblical stories and expansions alongside their later reception, she shows that the story of Gideon the mighty warrior is, in many ways, the story of masculinity in miniature: a constantly-transforming construct.

Rewriting Masculinity

Gideon, Men, and Might

Kelly J. Murphy

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Chapter 1 - Rewriting Gideon: Qumran, Gender, and Josephus

Chapter 2 - Mighty Warriors?: Men and Masculinities

Chapter 3 - Laying Out the Fleece: Divine Assurance Across the Ages

Chapter 4 - Battlefields: Becoming a Man

Chapter 5 - Fathers and Sons: Cutting Gideon Down to Size

Conclusions

Bibliography

Notes

Index

Rewriting Masculinity

Gideon, Men, and Might

Kelly J. Murphy

Author Information

Kelly J. Murphy is an Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Central Michigan University. She is the co-editor of Apocalypses in Context: Apocalyptic Currents Through History and has published work in Currents in Biblical Research, Journal of the Bible and Its Reception, as well as Bible Odyssey and Religion Dispatches.

Rewriting Masculinity

Gideon, Men, and Might

Kelly J. Murphy

Reviews and Awards

"The double focus on Gideon's reception within and beyond the HB is successfully maintained throughout and is a valuable contribution to study of Gideon and biblical masculinities." -- Catherine Lewis-Smith, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

"In Rewriting Masculinity, Kelly J. Murphy seamlessly weaves together the perspectives of masculinity studies, redaction criticism, and reception history to create an engaging and fresh understanding of the character of Gideon. Murphy's careful scholarship explores how Gideon's masculinity is framed across different contexts to address changing constructions of masculinity. The book makes significant contributions to the field of masculinity studies and Judges scholarship and is accessible to a range of audiences."--Susan E. Haddox, author of Metaphor and Masculinity in Hosea

"With a compelling blend of accessible prose, popular culture references, and technical scholarship, Kelly J. Murphy elucidates the shifting portrayals and ideologies of masculinity within the Gideon story, as well as the varying social and editorial contexts in which they were produced and the diverse interpretive modes in which they have been received. The creative combination of masculinity studies, redaction criticism, and reception history is an exemplar of the best that today's interdisciplinary biblical scholarship has to offer. And Murphy never loses sight of the weighty, cultural import of this analysis for present-day constructions and performances of gender."--Brad E. Kelle, Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew, point Loma Nazarene University

"Kelly J. Murphy, a creative scholar and gifted pedagogue, here takes us on a tour of the life and times of Gideon-from the early Hebrew fragment of the book of Judges recovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls, to the most recent copy of the Bible placed in a hotel nightstand by the Gideons International. With Murphy as our learned and sure-footed guide amidst redaction and reception, the result is a well-written and fascinating study of a biblical figure, a biblical story, and the meaning of manhood in both and beyond." --Brent A. Strawn, Professor of Old Testament, Emory University