Prooftext as pretext: The strategem of scriptural and midrashic citation in Maimonides' 'Guide of the Perplexed'.

摘要

The method of esotericism, is particularly crucial for deciphering the writings of the medieval Jewish philosopher and jurist Moses Maimonides (1135--204). The obscurity of the material is compounded by his explicitly admitted use of devices such as contradiction, so that only those possessed of a high degree of philosophical sophistication will have the qualifications to decode the text.; Scant scholarly attention has been paid to the manner in which rabbinic midrash and scriptural citations are utilized to convey those positions meant for the appropriately targeted reader. Through a series of studies, this thesis undertakes a comprehensive analysis of Maimonides' use of rabbinic and scriptural sources adduced as prooftexts with a view to demonstrating that, far from being mere prooftexts, they are really vehicles for the accomplishment of Maimonides' esoteric enterprise. The context of the original source material; parallel treatment of identical sources in different compositions, both legal and philosophical; traditional understanding of those sources prior to Maimonides; incongruity of prooftext to text; and contemporary literary theory are some of the tools by which the thesis shall be proven. Without a close reading of all biblical and rabbinic citations in the Guide its multilayered structure cannot be penetrated to arrive at its core meaning. At the same time one of the goals of this thesis is to distinguish Maimonides as a uniquely Jewish thinker as opposed to a mere expositor of the Aristotelian tradition.; The series of studies through which this thesis is demonstrated focus on the following: (1) Passages from Midrash Rabbah cited in the Introduction reflecting on the parabolic method of midrash and scripture. (2) Retrieval of the secret submerged in the prophetic parable of Jacob's ladder via various scriptural prooftexts and midrashic citations interspersed throughout the Guide, to reveal a heterodox view of divine providence. (3) A complex weave of text and Scriptural prooftext dealing exhaustively with the term "trial" (nisayon) which transforms the chapter into an esoteric link between the sections on providence and those on the rationale for the commandments.