Abstract
Different kinds of omissions sometimes occur, or are perceived to occur, in traditional narratives and in tradition-inspired literature. A familiar instance is when a narrator realizes that he or she does not fully remember the story that he or she has begun to tell, and so leaves out part of it, which for listeners may possibly result in an unintelligible narrative. But many instances of narrative gap are not so obvious. From straightforward, objective gaps one can distinguish less-obvious subjective gaps: in many cases narrators do not leave out anything crucial or truly relevant from their exposition, and yet readers perceive gaps and take steps to fill them. The present paper considers four examples of subjective gaps drawn from ancient Greek literature (the Pandora myth), ancient Roman literature (the Pygmalion legend), ancient Hebrew literature (the Joseph legend), and early Christian literature (the Jesus legend). I consider the quite varied ways in which interpreters expand the inherited texts of these stories, such as by devising names, manufacturing motives, creating backstories, and in general filling in biographical ellipses. Finally, I suggest an explanation for the phenomenon of subjective gaps, arguing that, despite their variety, they have a single cause.
Highlights
For this reason all the churches of the prophet Elias that exist, they are on mountains
In the usual telling of the legend the prophet Elias, weary of seafaring, determined to seek a community that knew nothing of the sea; he located them by walking inland with an oar on his shoulder until he found a community that did not recognize it as an oar
A different solution to the problem of Joseph’s bride took the form, not of a legend, but of a short novel, Joseph and Aseneth, a work some thirty-five pages in length that was composed in Greek by an unknown Jewish author, perhaps sometime between 100 B.C. and 100 A.D
Summary
As Joseph traveled throughout Egypt in his role as vizier and maidens threw gifts to him in the hope of attracting his attention, Asenath, having only her amulet, 4 Despite their similarity of name, the eunuch Potiphar and the priest Potiphera are two different characters.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
