Reading Dreams An Audience-Critical Approach

In Reading Dreams Derek S. Dodson takes the unusual approach of viewing the dreams in the Gospel of Matthew as evidence of the text's authorial audience. Dodson describes the social function of dreams in the ancient world, noting that they constituted a form of divination and explaining the theories and classification of dreams that developed in the ancient world. He also provides an insightful analysis of the representation of dreams in ancient writings, considering the literary form and function of dreams and their place in Greco-Roman rhetorical tradition.

Derek S. Dodson is Lecturer in Religion in Department of Religions at Baylor University, TX, USA.

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Abbreviations	p. ix
Introduction	p. 1
Previous Scholarship and Present Contribution	p. 2
Methodological Considerations	p. 7
Overview of this Study	p. 10
The Ancient, Social Context of Dreams	p. 12
The Practice of Dreams	p. 12
Dreams and Divination	p. 13
Dreams and Ancient Magic	p. 18
Dreams and Greco-Roman Cults	p. 28
Dream Interpreters	p. 36
The Classifications and Theories of Dreams	p. 42
Conclusion	p. 52
The Ancient, Literary Context of Dreams, Part I: The Script of Dreams	p. 53
The Literary Form of Dreams	p. 55
The Rhetoric of Dreams	p. 59
Dreams and Encomiastic Rhetoric	p. 60
Dreams and Rhetorical Style	p. 62
Summary	p. 63
The Inventiveness of Dreams	p. 63
Literary Imitation of Dreams	p. 65
Homeric Quotations and Echoes	p. 68
The Double-Dream Report	p. 70
Dreams and 'Rewritten Bible'	p. 74
Summary	p. 82
Conclusion	p. 82
The Ancient, Literary Context of Dreams, Part II: The Literary Functions of Dreams	p. 83
Dreams in Greco-Roman Histories	p. 84
Herodotus' Histories	p. 85
Josephus' Jewish War	p. 95
Dreams in Greco-Roman Biographies	p. 101
Acts of the Apostles	p. 101
Plutarch's Parallel Lives	p. 105
Suetonius' Lives of the Caesars	p. 112
Dreams in Greco-Roman Fiction	p. 116
Chariton's Chaereas and Callirhoe	p. 116
Longus' Daphnis and Chloe	p. 120
Acts of Thomas	p. 127
Acts of Andrew	p. 129
Conclusion	p. 133
Dreams in the Gospel of Matthew	p. 134
The Form of the Matthean Dreams	p. 134
The Form of Matthew 1.18b-25	p. 139
The Form of Matthew 2.13-15	p. 146
The Form of Matthew 2.19-21	p. 146
Summary	p. 147
The Functions of the Matthean Dreams and Additional Observations	p. 147
The Dream of Matthew 1.18b-25	p. 147
The Dream of Matthew 2	p. 156
The Dream of Matthew 27.19	p. 162
Summary	p. 166
The Significance of Dreams in Matthew's Portrait of Jesus	p. 168
Conclusion	p. 169
Conclusion	p. 170
Summary of Research and Results	p. 170
Implications for Further Research	p. 172
Appendix: The Matthean Transfiguration as a Dream-Vision Report	p. 175
Bibliography	p. 185
Index of References	p. 205
Index of Modern Authors	p. 213
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

FREE SHIPPING

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

Reading Dreams An Audience-Critical Approach to the Dreams in the Gospel of Matthew

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials