scholarly journals Characterisation of Thomas in the Fourth Gospel

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johnson Thomaskutty

Thomas appears four times within the narrative framework of the Fourth Gospel (Jn 11:16; 14:5; 20:24–28; 21:2). His presence in the Gospel introduces some of the strategic transitions within the macro-narrative structure. The following are some of the crucial moments that are introduced through the entry of Thomas: firstly, Thomas’ character is brought to the foreground towards the end of Jesus’ public ministry, where a transition is underway through Lazarus’ death and raising to Jesus’ death and resurrection (11:16); secondly, he appears as a significant interlocutor engaged in dialogue so that Jesus’ identity as ‘the way, the truth, and the life’ may be revealed to the disciples during his private ministry (Jn 14:5–6); thirdly, Thomas’ character appears towards the climax of the Book of Glory as he is instrumental in revealing the identity of Jesus as ‘Lord’ and ‘God’ (Jn 20:24–29); and fourthly, he appears as one of the seven disciples during the post-resurrection context in Galilee (Jn 21:2). The unique placement of Thomas communicates something significant about the character and his development within the narrative.

1975 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. A. Mastin

Because the term θεóς is used so infrequently of Jesus in the New Testament, it is not surprising to find that there are relatively few discussions of it as a christological title. However, it may be of value to investigate the way in which the Fourth Gospel speaks of Jesus as ‘God’ since its usage differs somewhat from that of the rest of the New Testament. First, the extent to which the New Testament describes Jesus as God will be surveyed, and this will be contrasted in general terms with the approach of the Fourth Evangelist. Then the passages in the Fourth Gospel which may call Jesus ‘God’ will be examined in more detail, and an attempt will be made to establish the way in which this designation is used by the evangelist. Next it will be asked how the distinctive usage of the Fourth Gospel came to be adopted. Finally the view that the word θεóς expresses a functional christology will be considered.


1985 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 582-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur H. Maynard
Keyword(s):  

In John 2. 4 there is a peculiar Greek idiom which has not only given almost every translator difficulty, but which is, in the opinion of the writer, both a key to the way in which the author of the Fourth Gospel used his sources, and to his interpretation of Jesus. The verse reads ‘And Jesus said to her: τί έμοί καί σοί; woman, my hour has not yet come.’


Author(s):  
Frederieke Y. Jansen

While we already know that clearly utopian or dystopian depictions of human-machine relationships in science fiction film can be effective rhetorical models that shape our ideas of HRI, this paper argues that sci-fi films, like Marjorie Prime (2017) and Be Right Back (2013), can also function as more neutral virtual laboratories that allow viewers to actively explore the pros and cons of those relationships in more detail. This paper specifically explores both Marjorie Prime and Be Right Back for the way they evoke questions or ideas about what it means to be human, what it means to interact with AI, and what a meaningful relationship between these two can bring. By following a neoformalist analysis, I will show how these cases continuously present us with devices that force us to reassess the role of robots in our lives. They do this by using deceptive, reflective, and confrontational strategies within characters, cinematography, narrative structure and setting.


2019 ◽  
pp. 186-192
Author(s):  
C. Palmer-Patel ◽  
Glyn Morgan

The afterword sums up the conclusions made by the chapters in the collection. All the chapters demonstrate that – although there is a wide variety of alternate history narratives produced – these texts all reflect on and reveal the nature of our current reality. A common theme throughout the collection is ‘Great Man’ model, where a sole figure is held responsible for big historical events. Another thread for discussion is the structure of form of alternate history, as the book explored science fiction and epic narratives alongside the development of alternate history. Issues of time within the structure of narrative were explored, as the collection considered breaks and continuities within alternate history. Many of these discussions emphasized the way that the cultural critique of minority voices are embedded in the narrative structure itself. Issues of power and dogma are often integral to these evaluations. Ultimately the collection concludes that there are a lot of questions that alternate history provokes, and while this collection cannot perhaps provide definite answers, it presents new ways to think about the genre in the hopes of stimulating further conversations.


2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-100
Author(s):  
Israel A. C. Noletto ◽  
Sebastião A. T. Lopes

Abstract Ted Chiang’s Story of Your Life (1998) and its filmic adaptation Arrival (2016) both use Heptapod B, an artificial language from extra-terrestrial origin, capable of conferring on its speakers the ability of precognition, as a primordial narrative framework. Innovative as it is, it not only determines the way the stories are recounted, but also raises some very interesting philosophical issues. Focusing on that fantastical language, we promote a comparative analysis of the differing perspectives of the novella writer and the filmmakers regarding the free will and determinism dichotomy in connection with foreknowledge, and how these distinct views may have been influenced by the adaptation process. With the aim of providing a solid basis for such discussion, we collect and review the contributions of Linda Hutcheon, Brian McFarlane, George Bluestone, Linda Gualda as well as of others in relation to the plot developments in the literary text and its filmic adaptation. As a result, we point out what is prioritized or transformed in the adaptation process, thus offering a theoretical and philosophical criticism on the two stories and a comprehensive exegesis of the texts.


2013 ◽  
Vol 47 (01) ◽  
pp. 104-107
Author(s):  
Mervi Miettinen

Watchmen(1987), written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons, is a 12-part graphic novel that portrays real-life superheroes in a fictional United States of the 1980s. An alternate universe where ordinary people without superpowers were inspired by superhero comics and took on the crime-fighting in tights in the 1940s, the comic portrays an America vastly different from our reality. Since its publication more than two decades ago, the comic has been the subject of extensive study due to its breathtaking narrative structure as well as its acute deconstruction of the superhero genre itself. Indeed, one of the text's most brutal deconstructions comes from the way it addresses superheroic masculinity, from the misogynistic vigilante Rorschach to the emasculated ex-hero Nite Owl. Through its cast of male heroes,Watchmendeconstructs the superhero genre by rewriting masculine tropes such as vigilantism and patriotism and by exposing the inherent contradictions within these gender-bound tropes from the fascist undercurrents of violent patriotism to the often-hinted sexual dysfunction of the costume-fetish variety.


1976 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 418-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles H. Talbert

In spite of its popularity, the contention that the Christian conception of Jesus as a descending-ascending saviour figure was derived from the gnostic redeemer myth faces serious problems. Three are widely noted; another needs attention. (I) The sources from which our knowledge of the gnostic myth comes are late: e.g. the Naassene hymn, the hymn of the Pearl, the Mandean materials, the Manichean evidence, the accounts in the church fathers, and the Nag Hammadi documents. Sources from Chenoboskion like the Paraphrase of Shem, the Apocalypse of Adam, and the Second Logos of the Great Seth do contain a myth of a redeemer that is only superficially christianized. Hence the gnostics may not have derived their myth from Christians. It does not follow, however, either that Christians got it from gnostics or that it is pre-Christian. (2) A redeemer myth is not essential to gnosticism. Though gnosticism may contain a redeemer myth (e.g. the Naassene hymn), it may exist without one. In Carpocrates' system, for example, Jesus' soul remembered what it had seen in its circuit with the unbegotten God. The Ophites in Origen'sAgainst Celsusknow of no descending-ascending redeemer. They look to an earthly being who fetches gnosis from heaven. InPoimandres, the writer is the recipient of a vision in rapture. He then teaches the way of salvation. Indeed, the proto-gnosticism of Paul's opponents in I Corinthians apparently did not contain a redeemer myth. Such evidence demands that a distinction be drawn between two issues: (a) whether or not there was a pre-Christian gnosticism, and (b) whether or not there was a pre-Christian gnostic redeemer myth. Since a redeemer myth is not constitutive for gnosticism, the existence of a pre-Christian gnosis is no guarantee for the presence of a gnostic redeemer myth. (3) In the Christian sources where the gnostic myth has been assumed to be influential (e.g. the Fourth Gospel), there is no ontological identity between Christ and the believers as in gnosticism. There is, in the Christian writings, no pre-existence of the soul or redeemed redeemer. Given these difficulties, why the attractiveness of the gnostic hypothesis?


2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 343-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesper Tang Nielsen

This article takes part in the reopened discussion of the Johannine δόξα/δοξάζϵιν by interpreting the concept in light of the narrative structures in the Fourth Gospel. On the basis of Aristotle's definition of a whole and complete μῦθος and his distinction between πϵριπϵ́τϵια and ἀναγνώρισις it is shown that the main structure in the Johannine narrative concerns humans' recognition of Jesus' identity as son of God. As a consequence of being firmly integrated in this narrative structure, the Johannine concept δόξα/δοξάζϵιν basically denotes divine identity and recognition. Opposing a contemporary trend in Johannine studies it is finally argued that δόξα/δοξάζϵιν in the Fourth Gospel should be understood within the normal narrative sequence.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Bruce W. Bell

<p>The Gospel of John is renowned for its pervasive use of irony. While this phenomenon is widely recognized by scholars, there have been only a few attempts to explain the “how” of Johannine irony and no meaningful attempt to explain its “why.” The last major treatment of the topic was by Paul Duke in his 1985 work, Irony in the Fourth Gospel, which provides an account of how Johannine irony works through an analysis of local and extended ironies. Other examinations, such as Gail O’Day’s Revelation in the Fourth Gospel in 1986, explore irony as a corollary of some other thematic concern. The reticence of scholars to delve deeper into the nature of Johannine irony is understandable given that as Duke puts it, irony laughs at all pretensions, especially the pretension of claiming to have grasped irony.  This study undertakes the demanding but necessary task of describing irony to a level that allows meaningful engagement with ironic texts, while accepting that it remains ultimately indefinable. Particular attention is paid to historical shifts of understanding of the nature of irony and the implications this has for appreciating irony at a conceptual level. From a survey of the Johannine scholarship, a comprehensive but non-exhaustive overview of the Fourth Gospel’s use of irony is derived. No previous work has attempted to approach the subject in this way. The main advantage of doing so is that it allows for the identification of broad patterns of irony and the way it functions in the narrative. This in turn provides a framework for proceeding to an examination of particular texts and the identification of a possible rationale.  The present study assesses several hypotheses to explain why the author of the Fourth Gospel makes such sustained use of irony. The preferred hypothesis is that it is intrinsically linked to a predominant Johannine theme of alētheia (truth). Drawing on the conceptual link between irony and truth, it argues that the truth theme is a deliberate literary strategy employed by the author to entice the reader to seek certain propositional truths within the narrative. This ultimately serves the author’s desire to evoke revelation and response in line with the Gospel’s purpose statement in 20:31.  The argument that irony serves the Johannine truth theme is tested with particular reference to the Prologue (1:1-18) and the Passion Narrative (chapters 18-19). The study establishes that irony serves as the link between appearance and reality in the narrative. Its subtle and engaging qualities make irony the most suitable vehicle to testify to the Gospel’s propositional statements in a manner that fulfils the author’s stated Christological (a revelation of Jesus’ true identity) and soteriological (a response that leads to salvation) purposes.</p>


JURNAL BASIS ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Tomi Arianto ◽  
Ambalegin Ambalegin

This research examined the formulation of legendary heroic stories and popular in Japan about the story of Rurouni Kenshin or often referred to as Samurai X and Miyamoto Mushashi atu called Samurai I. The two stories are then adapted into the screen and get a positive response and even enter in star 7 in the Box Office and imdb. It’s clear that the two of the stories surged as apopular works and deserve to be analyzed by using the popular literature approach. To examine the hypothesis, researchers used the Cawelty theory with the terminology of formula/formulae. By using the Cawelty concept, this research examined the formulas used in both Japanese legend stories Rurouni Kenshin and Miyamoto Mushashi regarding similarities and differences as well as the factors that caused them to become popular according to the values and tastes of the audience. The results of the study indicated that the two action legends generally have the same action story formula as the cawelty formula, story/narrative structure, and similar motives for action. The difference from the two stories lines mainly in the way of author presents mythology and metaphor. Formula is one of the main factors that make a story like and get a positive response in the market, including consistency, originality, and the ability to attract miracles, place and style in the presentation of stories.


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