Aviya Kushner, the author of The Grammar of God, was raised in an Orthodox Jewish family where not only was Hebrew her first language and language studied/spoken it school, moreover, it went beyond simply speaking it in home and class, rather, her family culture was vested in discussing, reveling in, and questioning the grammar, meaning, and overall language of the ancient Hebrew text: The Bible. When Kushner came across an English translation of the Bible for the first time, she writes about how she did not seem to recognize the thing she loved dearly. This jolting surprise in a Graduate school course led her on the path to write this book that examines the role of language, translation, and what it all means. The heart of the book seeks to …show more content…
God seems harsh and cold, what is there to like? Not only have major issues ideas been misconstrued through the translations, but also, the beauty and rhythm of the Bible has been completed changed, as Kushner notes. In talking about some of the more dramatic changes, Kushner discusses how she was sitting in class while the professor and her classmates were talking about the harshness of Moses' laws. That is when it hit me: an appreciation for the Bible. Her book cleared up the idea of why the Bible has always come across negatively to me, it has merely been misconstrued. What amazes me even more is her empathetic response to the translators. When finding out how much has been changed in English of the book she loves, instead of sitting in anger, she sought to understand why. She uncovered truths about those who took up translating, and even found she resonated with them at times. The way that she was able to illustrate the law made me a little awestruck. The Ten Commandments are not the ten commandments, they are the ten statements. Kushner explained how the presentation of the Law matters, and it resonated deep within …show more content…
Many of the religious leaders that I have spent time around act as if the "Old Testament" does not even have a Jewish origin. What Kushner was able to do in such a short book cannot be described as anything other than empathetic and done out of love. Although my journey to appreciating the Bible on a deeper level started last fall in "Intro to Bible" (because of the discussion of Hebrew origins), Kushner's book has brought me further along. I can be nothing if not grateful for that. Understanding the context of a book millions of individuals hold sacred is important, and that is a piece of what Kushner has given to such a large community of people: accessibility to the Hebrew understanding, even if it is only limited to 196 (or so)
I think she has the type of communication of a thinker, because she took a fact that affected the large part of the indigenous Mayan population in their country and in their region, this was what made her question why the government was being so oppressive , I investigate all the reasons and blame the government on the acts of violence that
David Brooks utilizes the rhetorical devices of Logos, Ethos, and Pathos to build his argument that disrespecting American values is counterproductive. First, Brooks uses the Rhetorical device of Pathos to appeal to the emotions of the reader. He says that “Over the centuries, this civic religion fired a fervent desire for change”(Par. 6). Brooks uses the word “fervent” in his writing, because it appeals to the emotions of the reader, It expresses the extent of the desire for change. This is known as pathos.
Gregor’s initial reaction to his transformation shows his preoccupation with work. His confusion over his radical transformation does not last long, quickly becoming concerned with work and disregarding that he woke up physically transformed into a monstrous vermin. Immediately after realizing he had transformed, Gregor explains, “Well, I haven’t given up hope completely; once I’ve gotten the money together to pay off my parents’ debt to [the boss] that will probably take another five to six years… But for the time being I’d better get up, since my train leaves at five” (4). The quick transition of Gregor’s thoughts from the initial shock to his economic duties reveals his ironic nonchalant attitude towards his nonsensical transformation and
It is amazing to see how she has kept her faith with God through all the business and struggles of life. Once she said, “We say keep your change, we'll keep our God, our guns, our constitution.” Even though she was not the first female vice president, she is known
The author's experiences during the holocaust weaken his faith in God and ultimately leads to an act of rebellion against Him. As a young child, the author had a strong desire to learn about God, His ways, and how He influences mankind. However, life in the camp begins to make the author question his faith. “Some of the
Diction choices such as “hell”, “anger”, “wrath”, and “misery” are all signs of a threatening tone. These particular tone words, and others used throughout the text, force the audience to accept God’s judgment and modify their current lifestyles. The Implication of hell similarly bolsters the scare tactics in this message; thus forcing the congregation to keep their lives nevermore the same. Furthermore, Edwards employs a structural organization that makes it so the last paragraph of the essay serves the idea of a threatening tone as it states a final warning that “every one that is out of christ” is waiting for “wrath to come.” This final warning serves as an ominous statement that frightens the audience into taking Edwards’ message to heart.
The next rhetorical appeals are logos and ethos. Logos deals with persuading the audience through the use of logic and reason. Logos can be stated by using facts, statistics, and evidence to back up your information. Logos was used in this article when President Andrew D White stated, “Some players grew their hair long to provide a modicum of head protection” (Zimmerman 2014). Some studies showed that if their hair was longer it would provide more padding when they would collide with each other.
What part of the chapter, if any, did you find most convincing? Why? [The more specific you are in your reference, the better.] I found convincing that when the professor asked his students to read the Nazi theology. The professor wanted them to understand how people can misinterpret the bible and bend the words to be able to use them as weapons against other religions.
“Separated by a Common Language:”1 Dialect in Their Eyes Were Watching God In the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, dialect is used in the dialogue. Hurston uses two very distinct writing styles in Their Eyes Were Watching God. One is in a style not so different than that of other American writers. The narrator begins Chapter 11 with, “Janie wanted to ask Hezekiah about Tea Cake, but she was afraid he might misunderstand her and think she was interested” (139).
Jonathan Edwards uses several types of writing skills to persuade his audience of God’s intentions. His use of figurative language, analogies, imagery, and repetition all emphasize Edwards’s views. He uses fear, anger, and apathy to appeal to the audience in attempt to warn his audience of God’s intentions. Jonathan Edwards uses fear in this sermon to terrorize his audience into thinking of God as someone to be feared, not someone to be loved. Throughout the sermon, Edwards uses figurative language along with imagery to frighten the audience.
He argues how language is essential to describe a god, even though he may exist,
Her way of writing is very straight forward and she backs up what she says with history. Talking about the different time periods and how people thought at the same time. She compared different artists, male and female to one another, so that a total picture
INTRODUCTION The authority of the Scripture is fundamental to evangelical faith and witness. But at the same time, not all evangelicals affirm the inerrancy of the scripture. Biblical inerrancy affirms that the biblical text is accurate and totally free from error of any kind. The difficulty in affirming the inerrancy of scripture does not seem to be so much on the spiritual and moral teachings of the Bible, however, the difficulty perhaps seems to emerge on the issue of accuracy in other disciplines such as history, science and acheology.
Rhetorical Analysis "Fear is an instructor of great sagacity and the herald of all resolutions. "- Ralph Waldo Emerson. “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” was a sermon written and delivered by American reverend Jonathan Edwards in 1741, and was an outstanding example of the potentially dominant convincing powers of the use of Rhetoric. The sermon, even when read silently, is effective in projecting a specific interpretation of the wrathful nature of God and the sinful nature of man.
At this point Edwards has grasped the attention of his listeners by using pathos to pertain to their emotions and feelings. Towards the end of the sermon his tone switches to one of reason in terms of not neglecting his words. He asks a series of rhetorical questions such as those who are unconverted and do not teach their children of Christ that they too will have to witness the wrath of God. As for literary devices such as metaphors, similes, and allegories, Edwards does not disappoint for his use of them most likely whipped a lot of Puritans back into their faith.