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History and memory in the Dead Sea Scrolls : remembering the teacher of righteousness / Travis B. Williams

Author
Williams, Travis B.
Published
Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2019.
Physical Description
xvi, 446 pages ; 24 cm

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Contents
Machine generated contents note: 1.Introduction -- 1.1.The Traditional Perspective on the Teacher of Righteousness -- 1.2.The New Perspective on the Teacher of Righteousness -- 1.3.Purpose of the Study -- pt. I METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS -- 2.A Theoretical Approach toward History -- 2.1.The Scientific Approach toward Historiography -- 2.2.The Postmodern Critique of Scientific Historiography -- 2.3.Scientific Historiography after the Postmodern Critique -- 2.4.Historiography and the Teacher Materials -- 2.5.Conclusion -- 3.A Mnemonic Approach toward History -- 3.1.Toward an Understanding of Memory Theory -- 3.2.The Relationship between History and Memory -- 3.3.Approaching History through Memory -- pt. II THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF MEMORY -- 4.Dating the Teacher and the Sources -- 4.1.Dating the Written Records of the Teacher of Righteousness -- 4.2.Dating the Teacher of Righteousness -- 4.3.Connecting the Teacher and the Sources -- 4.4.Conclusion -- 5.The Availability of Memory Carriers -- 5.1.Estimating the Size of the Teacher's Community -- 5.2.Calculating Life Expectancy in the Greco-Roman World -- 5.3.Life Expectancy within the Teacher's Community -- 5.4.Conclusion -- 6.Memory and the Impact of Source Materials -- 6.1.The Nature of Intertextuality -- 6.2.The Implications of Intertextuality -- 6.3.Conclusion -- 7.The Teacher of Righteousness in Ancient Media -- 7.1.The Teacher in Written Tradition -- 7.2.The Teacher in Oral Tradition -- 7.3.Conclusion -- pt. III THE PROCESSES OF MEMORY -- 8.The Cognitive Origins of Memory: Scripturalizing the Life of the Teacher -- 8.1.An Introduction to Memory Schemas -- 8.2.A Structural Analysis of Memory Schemas -- 8.3.A Functional Analysis of Memory Schemas -- 8.4.Conclusion -- 9.From Cognitive Perceptions to Community Traditions: The Formation of Collective Memory -- 9.1.The Communication of Teacher Memories -- 9.2.Establishing the Teacher Tradition -- 9.3.Conclusion -- 10.Tracing the Development of Memory: The Transmission of the Teacher Tradition -- 10.1.Collective Memory in the Damascus Document -- 10.2.Collective Memory in the Pesharim -- 10.3.Conclusion -- 11.Evaluating the Potential for Change: The Malleability and Persistence of the Teacher Tradition -- 11.1.Malleability and Persistence in Memory Studies -- 11.2.Constructing an Evaluative Model for Reputational Memory -- 11.3.Mnemonic Conditions within the Scrolls Community -- 11.4.Conclusion.
Summary
The nature and reliability of the ancient sources are among the most important issues in the scholarship on the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is noteworthy, therefore, that scholars have grown increasingly skeptical about the value of these materials for reconstructing the life of the Teacher of Righteousness. Travis B. Williams' study is designed to address this new perspective and its implications for historical inquiry. He offers an important corrective to popular conceptions of history and memory by introducing memory theory as a means of informing historical investigation. Charting a new methodological course in Dead Sea Scrolls research, Williams reveals that properly representing the past requires an explanation of how the mnemonic evidence found in the relevant sources could have developed from a historical progression that began with the Teacher. His book represents the first attempt in Dead Sea Scrolls scholarship to integrate history and memory in a comprehensive way.
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ISBN
1108493335 hardcover
9781108493338 hardcover
Bibliography Note
Includes bibliographical references and index.
View MARC record | catkey: 27680934