Very good job of explaining the problem of allegory overabundance while still showing that both allegory AND applicability have their place and interact with each other! ^-^
"Freedom of the reader 👩🏫 " this is so essential and I totally agree with you that the writer who respect it will be more likely to be successfull. Thank you for sharing this interesting opinion.
I’ve always felt that the bible was a great allegory for the journey of the human soul. I think you make a great point about certain parts being more allegorical, like the parables, while others are very applicable. I should have made that clearer in the video so thanks for pointing it out!
I stumbled upon the fact that the Bible is entirely allegorical around twenty years ago and I have actually been able to decipher significant portions of it. The allegory operates very much like a code since all the Biblical authors employed the same system. Because it was forbidden to create obvious texts describing how the allegory worked, much of the allegory consists of clandestine lessons about the allegory itself. For example, books such as Proverbs and Song of Solomon are best described as allegoric thesauruses in which metaphors are defined and described in relation to other metaphors. (Real world meanings of key metaphors are only transmitted orally.) The texts that resemble "history" or "myth" mostly provide a secret history that again is related to the allegory. For example, the Gospels tell how this allegoric code (the Word) was betrayed by the person that Josephus identified as Judas the Galilean and how the Word was eventually "resurrected" by a combination of censorship and promotion of a false system of allegoric interpretation created by Philo of Alexandria. (Josephus also employed this allegory and that is why he is presented in the Gospels as Joseph of Arimathea.) This allegory relies heavily on allusions to provide context but many of these allusions have been dismissed as mere "parallels". One example of how vital it is to recognize allusions is found in Revelation 13:3: "One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast." This fatal wound that was healed was a deliberate allusion to an account by Josephus in which he claimed to have received a wound that appeared to onlookers as being fatal: "In the mean time, Josephus, as he was going round the city, had his head wounded by a stone that was thrown at him; upon which he fell down as giddy. Upon which fall of his the Jews made a sally, and he had been hurried away into the city, if Caesar had not sent men to protect him immediately; and as these men were fighting, Josephus was taken up, though he heard little of what was done. So the seditious supposed they had now slain that man whom they were the most desirous of killing, and made thereupon a great noise, in way of rejoicing. This accident was told in the city, and the multitude that remained became very disconsolate at the news, as being persuaded that he was really dead, on whose account alone they could venture to desert to the Romans. But when Josephus's mother heard in prison that her son was dead, she said to those that watched about her, That she had always been of opinion, since the siege of Jotapata, [that he would be slain,] and she should never enjoy him alive any more. She also made great lamentation privately to the maid‐servants that were about her, and said, That this was all the advantage she had of bringing so extraordinary a person as this son into the world; that she should not be able even to bury that son of hers, by whom she expected to have been buried herself. However, this false report did not put his mother to pain, nor afford merriment to the robbers, long; for Josephus soon recovered of his wound, and came out, and cried out aloud, That it would not be long ere they should be punished for this wound they had given him. He also made a fresh exhortation to the people to come out upon the security that would be given them. This sight of Josephus encouraged the people greatly, and brought a great consternation upon the seditious." (Josephus’ Wars of the Jews, Book 5, Chapter 13, paragraph 3. ) Once this allusion is recognized, the connection between the "Beast" and the Roman Army becomes obvious and this makes deciphering the surrounding allegory much simpler.
Very good job of explaining the problem of allegory overabundance while still showing that both allegory AND applicability have their place and interact with each other! ^-^
I’m glad it came across well! Thanks for the support! 🙏
"Freedom of the reader 👩🏫 " this is so essential and I totally agree with you that the writer who respect it will be more likely to be successfull.
Thank you for sharing this interesting opinion.
Absolutely! Let the reader be free! 😁
@@writingfromscratchyt
I went down a rabbit hole of “allegory”. Very informative content. Thank you for sharing
It’s easy to do! No problem - thank you for watching!
I can definitely see that allegory is a problem in lots of modern media - thanks for explaining it
Me too!
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😁
Wait, the whole bible? What is it an alegory for?
More seriously, there are explicit parables in the bible. But it's actually a good example for highly versatile applicability.
I’ve always felt that the bible was a great allegory for the journey of the human soul. I think you make a great point about certain parts being more allegorical, like the parables, while others are very applicable. I should have made that clearer in the video so thanks for pointing it out!
I stumbled upon the fact that the Bible is entirely allegorical around twenty years ago and I have actually been able to decipher significant portions of it. The allegory operates very much like a code since all the Biblical authors employed the same system. Because it was forbidden to create obvious texts describing how the allegory worked, much of the allegory consists of clandestine lessons about the allegory itself. For example, books such as Proverbs and Song of Solomon are best described as allegoric thesauruses in which metaphors are defined and described in relation to other metaphors. (Real world meanings of key metaphors are only transmitted orally.) The texts that resemble "history" or "myth" mostly provide a secret history that again is related to the allegory. For example, the Gospels tell how this allegoric code (the Word) was betrayed by the person that Josephus identified as Judas the Galilean and how the Word was eventually "resurrected" by a combination of censorship and promotion of a false system of allegoric interpretation created by Philo of Alexandria. (Josephus also employed this allegory and that is why he is presented in the Gospels as Joseph of Arimathea.)
This allegory relies heavily on allusions to provide context but many of these allusions have been dismissed as mere "parallels". One example of how vital it is to recognize allusions is found in Revelation 13:3:
"One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast."
This fatal wound that was healed was a deliberate allusion to an account by Josephus in which he claimed to have received a wound that appeared to onlookers as being fatal:
"In the mean time, Josephus, as he was going round the city, had his head wounded by a stone that was thrown at him; upon which he fell down as giddy. Upon which fall of his the Jews made a sally, and he had been hurried away into the city, if Caesar had not sent men to protect him immediately; and as these men were fighting, Josephus was taken up, though he heard little of what was done. So the seditious supposed they had now slain that man whom they were the most desirous of killing, and made thereupon a great noise, in way of rejoicing. This accident was told in the city, and the multitude that remained became very disconsolate at the news, as being persuaded that he was really dead, on whose account alone they could venture to desert to the Romans. But when Josephus's mother heard in prison that her son was dead, she said to those that watched about her, That she had always been of opinion, since the siege of Jotapata, [that he would be slain,] and she should never enjoy him alive any more. She also made great lamentation privately to the maid‐servants that were about her, and said, That this was all the advantage she had of bringing so extraordinary a person as this son into the world; that she should not be able even to bury that son of hers, by whom she expected to have been buried herself. However, this false report did not put his mother to pain, nor afford merriment to the robbers, long; for Josephus soon recovered of his wound, and came out, and cried out aloud, That it would not be long ere they should be punished for this wound they had given him. He also made a fresh exhortation to the people to come out upon the security that would be given them. This sight of Josephus encouraged the people greatly, and brought a great consternation upon the seditious." (Josephus’ Wars of the Jews, Book 5, Chapter 13, paragraph 3. )
Once this allusion is recognized, the connection between the "Beast" and the Roman Army becomes obvious and this makes deciphering the surrounding allegory much simpler.
That’s a really extensive breakdown and given me some things to consider! Thanks for putting in the effort!
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