Includes bibliographical references and index.

Abbreviations -- Acknowledgments -- 1 Introduction -- 1 Background of Antiquities -- 2 Audience, Readers, and Publication of Antiquities -- 3 Aims and Purpose of Antiquities -- 4 Why “Court-Tales”? On Genre, Categories, and Labels -- 5 Methods and Challenges -- 6 Plan of Study -- 2 Greco-Roman Discourses of Exemplarity and Josephus -- 1 Introduction -- 2 “Greco-Roman Discourses of Exemplarity” Defined -- 3 Moralism and Exemplarity in Josephan Scholarship -- 4 Exemplarity in Josephus’ Antiquities -- 5 Greco-Roman Discourses of Exemplarity in this Study -- 3 A Tale of Two Josephs: Joseph the Tobiad and Scriptural Joseph -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Joseph the Tobiad and Scriptural Joseph as Wise Courtiers -- 3 Joseph the Tobiad and Scriptural Joseph as Sexually (Im)moral -- 4 Conclusion -- 4 “He Loved Him Still More as If He Were His Only Genuine Son”: Hyrcanus the Tobiad and Scriptural Joseph -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Sibling Rivalry in the Tales of the Tobiads and the Scriptural Joseph Story -- 3 Reward and Punishment in the Tales of the Tobiads and the Scriptural Joseph Story -- 4 Conclusion -- 5 “You Will Forthwith Find Release from These Chains”: Agrippa I and Scriptural Joseph -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Josephan Editorial Comments -- 3 Agrippa I and Scriptural Joseph as Falsely Accused and Unjustly Imprisoned -- 4 Conclusion -- 6 Banquets Fit for Kings: Agrippa I and Esther -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Anti-Jewish Plots in the Accounts of Agrippa I and Esther -- 3 Banquet Scenes in the Accounts of Agrippa I and Esther -- 4 Conclusion -- 7 Setting a Good Example: Summary and Conclusions -- Bibliography -- Index.

Edwards explores how Josephus in Antiquities adapts the scriptural stories of Joseph and Esther in unexpected ways as models for accounts of more recent Jewish figures. Terming this practice “subversive adaptation,” Edwards contextualizes it within Greco-Roman literary culture and employs the concept of “discourses of exemplarity” to show how Josephus used narratives about past figures to engage Roman elites in moral reflection and pragmatic decision-making. This book supplies analysis of frequently overlooked accounts as well as Josephus’ broader literary strategies, and shows how ancient Jews appropriated imperial historiographical conventions and forms of discourse while countering Greco-Roman claims of cultural superiority.

English

Description based on print version record.