Characters and Characterization in the Gospel of John

by Skinner, Christopher W.

• ISBN13: 9780567657435
• ISBN10: 0567657434
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2014-10-25
• Publisher: Bloomsbury T&T Clark

Summary

This volume examines characters in the Fourth Gospel and provides an in-depth look at different approaches currently employed by scholars working with literary and reader-oriented methods. Divided into two sections, the book first considers method and theory, followed by exegetical character studies using a literary or reader-oriented method. It summarizes the state of the discussion, examines obstacles to arriving at a comprehensive theory of character in the Fourth Gospel, compares different approaches, and compiles the diverse methodologies into one comparative study. Through this detailed exegesis, the various theories will come alive, and the merits (or deficiencies) of each approach will be available to the reader. This volume is both a comprehensive study in narrative/reader-oriented theories, and a study in the application of those theories as they apply to characterization. Summing up current research on characters and characterization in the Fourth Gospel, this book also provides a comprehensive presentation of different approaches to character that have developed in recent years.

Author Biography

Christopher W. Skinner is Assistant Professor of Religion at Mount Olive College in North Carolina, USA.

Table of Contents

Introduction: ‘Characters and Characterization in the Gospel of John: Reflections on the Status Quaestionis’ - Christopher W. Skinner

Part I: Methods and Models for Reading Johannine Characters

1. A Narrative Critical Approach to the Fourth Gospel - James L. Resseguie
2. The Weave of the Tapestry: Character and Theme in John - R. Alan Culpepper
3. A Comprehensive Approach to Understanding Character in the Gospel of John - Cornelis Bennema
4. Eyewitness Testimony and the Characters in the Fourth Gospel - Judith Christine Single Redman
5. ‘Who Are You?’ Comparison/Contrast and Fourth Gospel Characterization - Raymond F. Collins
6. Three Ambiguities: Historical Context, Implied Reader, and the Nature of Faith - Susan E. Hylen
7. Misunderstanding, Christology, and Johannine Characterization: Reading John’s Characters Through the Lens of the Prologue - Christopher W. Skinner

Part II: Johannine Character Studies

8. The Fourth Gospel’s Characterization of God: A Rhetorical Perspective - Stan Harstine
9. John the Baptist: Witness and Embodiment of the Prologue in the Gospel of John - Sherri Brown
10. Theological Complexity and the Characterization of Nicodemus in John’s Gospel - Craig R. Koester
11. The Woman of Samaria: Her Characterization, Narrative and Theological Significance - Mary L. Coloe
12. Martha and Mary: Levels of Characterization in Luke and John - Dorothy A. Lee
13. ‘Whom Jesus Loved’: Anonymity and Identity. Belief and Witness in the Fourth Gospel - David R. Beck
14. The Character of Pilate in the Gospel of John - Cornelis Bennema

Bibliography