SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This thesis is about the ways in which the works of the Hebrew writer S.Y. Agnon (a winner of the Nobel Prize for literature) have been or may be interpreted. Seven of Agnon's stories (Ha-Adonit veha-Rokhel, Agadat ha-Sofer, Hupat Dodim, Bi-demi Yameha, Shevu'at Emunim, Edo ve-Einara and Temol Shilshom), the summaries of which are given in Chapter 2, have been examined closely both in their content and in their interpretation. These interpretations have been divided into five aspects, appearing in Chapter 3, and are as follows: Jewish religion and tradition; historical and social changes; psychology; mythos and poetry; and symbolism. An evaluation and criticism has been made of nine of Agnon's interpreters: Y. Bahat, A.J. Band, B. Hochman, B. Kurzweil, S.Y. Penueli, D. Sadan, D. Stern, M. Tochner, and E. Zoref. In the second part of the thesis there are some comparisons of the texts of the seven stories with some of Robert Graves's mythological theories as they appear in his books 'The White Goddess' and 'The Greek Myths'. The subjects for the comparisons are: The God of the Year; the Myth of the Twins; and Various Aspects of the Great Goddess. The purpose of this part of the work is to propose a new approach to the interpretation of Agnon, based on his instinctive inclination towards Nature religion and the Mother Goddess. Finally there is a list of abbreviations and a general bibliography of works on Agnon.