Acedia, ‘Bourgeois Ennui’, and Kingship in the Hebrew Bible and The Epic of Gilgamesh
This article first discusses the concept of acedia/restlessness in Christian monastic and scholastic thought, as well as modern philosophy. Using it as a heuristic tool, it then proceeds to examine this phenomenon in relation to ANE kingship, arguing that a monarch’s unfocused and unchecked energy (...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
2021
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| In: |
The journal of theological studies
Year: 2021, Volume: 72, Issue: 2, Pages: 539-579 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Gilgamesh epic
/ Gilgamesch ca. 28./27. Jh. v. Chr.
/ Bible. Samuel 2. 11-12
/ David, Israel, König
/ Accidie
/ Scholasticism
/ Monasticism
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| IxTheo Classification: | BC Ancient Orient; religion HB Old Testament KAE Church history 900-1300; high Middle Ages KCA Monasticism; religious orders NCA Ethics |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article first discusses the concept of acedia/restlessness in Christian monastic and scholastic thought, as well as modern philosophy. Using it as a heuristic tool, it then proceeds to examine this phenomenon in relation to ANE kingship, arguing that a monarch’s unfocused and unchecked energy (one of the manifestations of acedia) could be personally and communally damaging. Focusing on two well-known kings, Gilgamesh and David, it shows how their ‘restless’ rules led to severe repercussions for their subjects. These kings have already been compared in scholarship, but this discussion analyses them specifically through the lens of acedia/restlessness. This line of investigation is prompted by similarities in the depiction of these kings in their respective literary corpora. Thus, The Epic of Gilgamesh casts Gilgamesh, a Babylonian king, as being burdened by a restless heart from the gods; one of the outcomes of this condition is his sexual exploitation of the people of Uruk. 2 Samuel in turn deals with David, an Israelite king, who neglects his duties, becomes restless, and violates Bathsheba, one of his subjects (2 Sam. 11-12). |
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| ISSN: | 1477-4607 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The journal of theological studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jts/flab065 |