Senses, Cultures, and Biblical Worlds

Call For Papers: We plan to hold two open sessions in 2016 and will accept proposals for both panels. First: With the Speech and Talk in the Ancient Mediterranean World program unit, we invite paper proposals for a joint session on the theme of Silence and the Senses Within the Ancient Mediterranean World. Papers could treat the definition, nature, and symbolism of silence as expressed in the OT/HB, the NT, other texts in the biblical world, or in their reception history. Paper proposals may address, among other topics, externally-imposed silences as punishment (including examples of mutilation, such as cutting out the tongue or off the ear of a slave); metaphorical uses of silence as punitive sense-deprivation; the relationship among silence, speech, and other senses or gestures; specific motifs regarding silence and their significance (e.g., silence as repentance, divine judgment, reverence, or helplessness); the reception of biblical perspectives on silence. Second: We invite paper proposals on the topic Synesthesia in the Biblical World. Defined as the automatic convergence or interpenetration of two or more senses, the physiological phenomenon of synesthesia gives rise to literary or symbolic synesthesia, which M. H. Abrams defines as "descriptions of one kind of sensation in terms of another." We are interested in papers that identify instances of synesthesia (physiological or symbolic) in texts, rituals, or practices from the biblical world and show how a sensory analysis contributes meaningfully to the interpretation of the example(s). Papers that address questions of method in the study of synesthesia are also welcome, though all papers should be grounded in specific texts or other examples. For both panels, the abstract should state the paper's thesis, outline the approach that will be taken, and identify the primary texts and examples to be discussed.

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