Constructing the Ideal Interpretation

The Significance of King Saul’s Mood in 1 Samuel

Authors

  • Fiona Macdonald University of Glasgow

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36399/GroundingsUG.8.208

Keywords:

1 Samuel, Saul, Faith, Madness, Mental Health, Narrative, Bible, Character

Abstract

The First Book of Samuel traces the rise and fall of King Saul. His troubled kingship has been interpreted in numerous ways over the centuries by biblical scholars, literary critics, medical professionals and people of faith. The search for an explanation of King Saul's 'madness' has meant that the text has been handled in several different ways, ultimately leading to the construction of various perceptions of the biblical narrative, of King Saul's character and of the biblical representation of mental health.

References

L. Ben-Noun, ‘What was the mental disease that afflicted King Saul?’ (2003) 2 Clinical Case Studies 270-282.

S. Bhayro, ‘The madness of King Saul’ (2003/04) 50 Archiv für Orientforschung 285-292.

L. Boadt, Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction (New York, 1984).

W. Brueggemann, An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination (Louisville, 2003).

R. Coggins, Introducing the Old Testament, 2nd Edition (Oxford, 2001).

C. C. H. Cook, ‘Psychiatry in scripture: sacred texts and psychopathology’ (2012) 36 The Psychiatrist Online 225-229.

S. Dragga, ‘In the shadow of the Judges: the failure of Saul’ (1987) 30 Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 39-46.

P. F. Esler, ‘The madness of Saul: a cultural reading of 1 Samuel 8-31’ in J. C. Exum & S. D. Moore (eds.), Biblical Studies/Cultural Studies: The Third Sheffield Colloquium, JSOTSup 266 (Sheffield, 1998), 220-262.

L. Eslinger, ‘“A change of heart”: 1 Samuel 16’ in L. Eslinger & G. Taylor (eds.), Ascribe to the Lord: Biblical and Other Studies in Memory of Peter C. Craigie, JSOTSup 67 (Sheffield, 1988), 341-361.

J. C. Exum, ‘Michal at the movies’ in M. D. Carroll R., D. J. A. Clines & P. R. Davies (eds.), The Bible and Human Society: Essays in Honour of John Rogerson, JSOTSup 200 (Sheffield, 1995), 273-292.

J. C. Exum, Tragedy and Biblical Narrative: Arrows of the Almighty (Cambridge, 1992).

E. S. Fiorenza, ‘The ethics of biblical interpretation: decentering biblical scholarship’ (1988) 107 Journal of Biblical Literature 3-17.

E. Forman, ‘“Pour être donc humain j'éprouve sa colère!”: Saul, King of Israel, as tragic hero in French drama’ (2013) 108 The Modern Language Review 438-458.

C. Green, How Are the Mighty Fallen? A Dialogical Study of King Saul in 1 Samuel, JSOTSup 365 (London, 2003).

R. P. Gordon, ‘Saul’s meningitis according to Targum 1 Samuel XIX 24’ (1987) 37 Vetus Testamentum 39-49.

D. M. Gunn, The Fate of King Saul: An Interpretation of a Biblical Story, JSOTSup 14 (Sheffield, 1980).

M. Huisman, ‘King Saul: work-related stress and depression’ (2007) 61 Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 890.

W. L. Humphreys, ‘The tragedy of King Saul: a study of the structure of 1 Samuel 9-31’ (1978) 6 Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 18-27.

W. L. Humphreys, ‘The rise and fall of King Saul: a study of an ancient narrative stratum in 1 Samuel’ (1980) 18 Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 74-90.

S.D. Moore & Y. Sherwood, The Invention of the Biblical Scholar: A Critical Manifesto (Minneapolis, 2011).

S. Nicholson, Three Faces of Saul: An Intertextual Approach to Biblical Tragedy, JSOTSup 339 (London, 2002).

E. Nissan & A. O. Shemesh, ‘King Saul’s “evil spirit” (ruach ra’ah): between psychology, medicine and culture’ (2010) 62 La Ricerca Folklorica 149-156.

H. M. van Praag, ‘The downfall of King Saul: the neurobiological consequences of losing hope’ (1986) 35 Judaism 414-428.

‘Stephen Fry on God’ in The Meaning of Life with Gay Byrne, RTÉ Commercial Enterprises Limited, broadcast in the Republic of Ireland on Sunday 1 February 2015 at 22:30. Available: <http://www.you tube.com/watch?v=-suvkwNYSQo>.

G. Stein, ‘The case of King Saul: did he have recurrent unipolar depression or bipolar affective disorder?’ (2011) 198 The British Journal of Psychiatry 212.

The Holy Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Anglicized Edition (Oxford, 1989).

S. Tongue, Between Biblical Criticism and Poetic Rewriting: Interpretative Struggles over Genesis 32: 22-32, Biblical Interpretation Series vol.129 (Leiden, 2014).

G. P. Williams & M. Le Roux, ‘King Saul’s mysterious malady’ (2012) 68 HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 6 pages. Available: <http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v68i1.906>.

Downloads

Published

2015-04-01

Issue

Section

Vol. VIII Articles

How to Cite

Constructing the Ideal Interpretation: The Significance of King Saul’s Mood in 1 Samuel. (2015). Groundings Undergraduate Journal, 8, 56-68. https://doi.org/10.36399/GroundingsUG.8.208