Friday, September 02, 2005
Who is Ambiguous? ::
Wayne, in the Better Bibles Blog has been arguing about ambiguity. Most recently in a post: "What is ambiguity?"
He's convinced that though ambiguity "is sometimes done intentionally by authors, ... But doing so is more of a language game than part of ordinary communication, IMO." Others, like me feel the opposite is true, many biblical authors delighted in "language games", puns and ambiguity and the like were grist to their mills.
Pondering this impasse - we are both/all convinced of our own positions, but actually since the authors are not around to ask (but comprehensively "mort"), we can neither side convince the other - I wondered why we have two groups of people so convinced that biblical authors work in such different ways... I think the personality of the modern reader enters in. Some readers like Wayne like communication to "say what it means and mean what it says" puns and the like are only for "fun". The other group love ambiguity, word play and the richness of text, and can tolerate a bit of well frankly lack of clarity, if the communication is rich...
Next time you read someone commenting on the likelihood that a biblical author does or does not intend ambiguity whip out your trusty Myers Briggs and behold you will understand their words...
¶ 3:43 PM
[to Del.icio.us]
Wayne, in the Better Bibles Blog has been arguing about ambiguity. Most recently in a post: "What is ambiguity?"
He's convinced that though ambiguity "is sometimes done intentionally by authors, ... But doing so is more of a language game than part of ordinary communication, IMO." Others, like me feel the opposite is true, many biblical authors delighted in "language games", puns and ambiguity and the like were grist to their mills.
Pondering this impasse - we are both/all convinced of our own positions, but actually since the authors are not around to ask (but comprehensively "mort"), we can neither side convince the other - I wondered why we have two groups of people so convinced that biblical authors work in such different ways... I think the personality of the modern reader enters in. Some readers like Wayne like communication to "say what it means and mean what it says" puns and the like are only for "fun". The other group love ambiguity, word play and the richness of text, and can tolerate a bit of well frankly lack of clarity, if the communication is rich...
Next time you read someone commenting on the likelihood that a biblical author does or does not intend ambiguity whip out your trusty Myers Briggs and behold you will understand their words...
¶ 3:43 PM
[to Del.icio.us]
