Some things I want to post about in 2012
I’m so fortunate to have such talented co-bloggers here at BLT. As I aspire to catch up with their insights, and in lieu of a New Year’s Resolution, I am listing some topics I want to post about in 2012. Perhaps, the mere hubris of my listing topics will create a curse that will prevent me from posting on them, but nonetheless, I cannot resist mentioning some of the posts that are in embryonic thought-stage now:
- Chaucer’s approach to translation.
- Echoes of the Harlem Renaissance in contemporary culture.
- The Drazin-Wagner translation of Onkelos’s translation of the Pentateuch.
- Translation in the Elizabethan era.
- The myth of the gendered brain.
- Finnegans Wake as a theory of translation.
- Moses Mendelssohn as a Biblical translator, literary critic, philosopher, and peacemaker
- The Fourth Gospel and the Chapters of Rabbi Eliezer
- Chinese translations of Alice in Wonderland.
- Bible translation preference as shibboleth.
- Translation of the Writings on the Theory of Kun Qu Singing.
- Translating Kunqu operas.
- On “Sayonara Kabuki-za.”
- Handwriting and nationality.
- First Enoch.
- The genius of Artscroll’s typsetting.
- Surveys of Dickens’ major works.
- Matt’s translation of the Zohar.
- Different approaches to translating Augustine.
- Literary qualities of the King James translation of the Hebrew Bible.
- (Finishing) my transcription of the “Core Issues in Prayer” lectures.
- Ecumenism in Bible translation.
- Chess as a spectator sport.
- Ishay Rosen-Zvi’s book on the “yetzer hara”: Demonic Desires.
- A parallel review of two masters of the horror genre: Bram Stoker and Stephen King.
- The evolution of melancholy in literature.
- Dostoevsky and translation.
I realize this is a wildly ambitious list, and I’ll be fortunate to actually just make a few of these posts. But still, in the dying hours of 2011, when 2012 is pure potential – oh how sweet to plan!
(But again, please don’t worry – even though I will doubtlessly fall short of my posting goals, I know my co-bloggers will have interesting topics to discuss.
BLT 
tov tov – get on with it! I need to see and understand The genius of Artscroll’s typsetting.
Hmmm….
I’m hoping you’ll find time to post something about the raising of Lazarus and why something so extraordinary as raising someone from the dead is only mentioned in the gospel of John. I’m open to just a little spark of understanding in this matter. Still perplexed after all these years (I’m 50).
Happy New Year and may God bless us all!
Lots of interesting topics. Start posting already!
REally interesting list. I’d love to discuss Enoch, but I think to do Enoch justice requires a long series, people haven’t even done the basics on Enoch.
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Russ
John is rather unique on lots of material, the uniqueness of Lazarus is not atypical of John. Water into wine and giving sight to a man born blind are both unique to John as well. In terms of non miracles the spear to the side, the appearance to Mary Magdalene outside the tomb, and his mother’s presence at the crucifixion. On the other hands Jesus is different, the Jesus of John makes infrequent use of parables for teaching, he is disinterested in exorcism, He also seems to have an entirely different theology with a conception of himself as Logos and speaking of the Paraclete to come.
Lets turn the question around. Why would you expect this particular unique aspect to John to be in the synoptics?
Nice list… I’m specially interested in the topics dealing with translation. Go go.. .start writing 🙂
Good blogging is nothing without intelligent readers and insightful commenters. I love how your list has prompted us so much already, Theophrastus. It’s also an honor to co-blog with you, Suzanne, Craig, and Jane (Jane, whose circumstances make it most difficult now to post). Your planned list of topics both lets me sit back in great anticipation and gets me thinking about my list. Rather than announce I’ll just repeat that Sonre Lerche line that’s an ear worm this morning: “I’m not going to say / That you ever stop to think along the way / But baby, be prepared to be surprised / Baby be prepared to be surprised / it’s all I know”.
Theophrastus: It is an intriguing list. I also meant to vote for “Sayonara Kabuki-za” and ecumenism in translation. Looking forward to see what develops.
CD-Host: I did a little more research this morning and noticed that the story of Jesus raising Jairus’s dead daughter is recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke — but not in John. I need to dedicate more time to studying the bible. Hey, there’s a resolution!!
Everyone: thanks for reading my (self-indulgent) post. You give me great encouragement to write!
Bob: Artscroll’s layout is a fascinating topic; and two excellent series to see it are Artscroll’s edition of the Babylonian Talmud and Artscroll’s edition of Rashi. You can see a sample page of Artscroll’s Rashi here. I think the layout is among the most sophisticated I have ever seen (and pedagogically quite effective.)
Russ: I’m not sure I have much to say about Lazarus at this point, except that John 11 is a great piece of literature. One of my favorite Bible commentaries is The Literary Guide to the Bible edited by Robert Alter and Frank Kermode. (There are some books with similar titles, but the Alter-Kermode book is the one I am recommending.) Frank Kermode writes about the literary significance of the story here (starting in the middle of page 456). I particularly like how Kermode points out the juxtaposition of the two responses of Jesus to Martha and Mary: To Martha he says “I am the resurrection and the life” but to Mary, he does not repeat his reply, he does not ask Mary if she believes, and he says nothing about resurrection: instead he weeps.
Chuck: Will do!
CD: Enoch is so fascinating; and I think I have some unique (or at least less-common) takes on the story.
Kris: Thanks for the encouragement, I have to learn to keep up with your ability to write a fascinating post each day!
Kurk: Well said, and now I’m quite excited (and curious) to see your posts.
I will check it out. Many thanks.