Search

Kafka's aphorism of the leopards tells us that no temple is spared of a visit of these surprising animals. However, when the leopards suddenly spill the chalices of the temples of capital and drink the wine over and over again they become part of the capitalist ritual. Their presence becomes noticeable, and the surprise effect of their profanity becomes predictable, calculated, instrumentalised, appropriated as part of the ceremony. However, the parable of the leopards may tell us more about Critical Theory than Political Theology. Such a parable can be seen as a method in itself to question complicities and co-options of Critical Theory in the very survival of capitalism. In the face of the ongoing collapse of earth ecosystems and unresolved global crises, the temples of capital may run dry on wine. What would it mean, then, to apostatise from the religious cult of capital? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The eleventh and twelfth centuries witnessed either the rise or revival of long-form amorous narratives in at least four courtly language traditions across the southwestern flank of Eurasia: Persian, Georgian, Greek, and French. This coeval occurrence of the "rise of romance" offers fruitful grounds for considering broad literary-historical questions about genre, poetics, and interconnectivity in a comparative fashion. The aim of this article is to give an account of this phenomenon in the early Persian context, with special attention to the role of poetry in transforming popular tales into elite literature. Understanding the implications of this practice may shed some light on possible factors contributing to the romance's (re-)emergence in other twelfth-century literary traditions. As a coda, this article suggests twelfth-century Anatolia and Syria as significant contact zones where all four of the courtly languages mentioned above would have had some opportunity to interact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) is one of the most illustrious stories on human relations among the teachings of Jesus Christ. One of the critical questions among scholars is whether the parable should be understood as a mere story of loving a neighbour offering empathy and kindness to people in need, or as an allegory. This study interrogates the parable of the Good Samaritan as an allegory about the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. On that basis, the Priest and Levite may refer to the government; Jericho may represent the world; thieves represent the hostile forces of the world in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic; the Samaritan represents Jesus Christ, and the Inn represents the Church. The study argues that while the moral aspect of good neighborliness is emphasized in the parable, the parable may also be viewed as an allegory considered related to the experiences of people under the coronavirus disease. The study also utilized the narrative perspective as a theoretical framework to cross-examine the parable of the Good Samaritan in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study concluded that the discourses on the parable of the Good Samaritan remind people to love everyone, including their enemies, even in the context of health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic where for the most part, others were shunned in an egocentric manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyses of Mark 7:15 are absent from sustained discussion in studies of Jesus's use of figurative language, despite its description as a παραβολή ("parable," 7:17). Studies typically label this text a "riddle," but this is generally undefined and its relationship to other figurative devices in language is mysterious. Accordingly, I discuss some modern categories of figurative language, like metaphor, riddle, and metaphorical riddle and consider how they are related to the topic of this article. I then analyze Mark 7:15 in the light of these discussions, concluding that the category of metaphorical riddle could be helpful in interpreting the Marcan text. In the context of the metaphorical riddle, Jesus, without providing a source domain, misleads the audience into thinking that the subject of 7:15b is something physical (probably excrement), when the true meaning relates to something abstract (sin). On this reading, Jesus's metaphorical riddle implies something like, "excrement is to the body as sin is to the heart." Regardless of one's interpretation, I argue that greater clarity regarding definitions and methods would be beneficial to this conversation, which can be ad hoc and idiosyncratic. In my view, the interpretation can be improved by utilizing approaches of modern literary criticism concerning figurative language, which offers relatively coherent and stable terms by which we might continue this discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New historicism establishes that the historiographical discourse is essentially narrative, that historiography necessarily behaves like a story. The problem boils down to the relationship between fiction and faction, to the narrative functioning of historiographical material. Novelistic prose can solve this relationship by being loyal or by undermining the idea of logical coherence in the narration, formal plot, time sequence and psychological explanation. Reality is, therefore, a semantic landfill that requires selection and formulation, be it through history or history, and in that process narrative/discursiveness, mimeticity, and rhetoric cannot be avoided. In the novels Ugursuz and Karabeg Ibrišimović sees the content of the past as a landfill of floating stories that write history as a story. At the same time, the story is freed from the unequivocal context of historiographical understanding and interpretation, and gives itself to endless interpretability, multiplied possibilities of interpretation offered by the literary context. With this, the meaning of the facts is checked by moving them from the historiographical context to the literary one, and also to the parabolic form, which is characterized by narrative disguise and complexity, paradoxicality, ambiguity and absurdity. In Ugursuz, the state of complete value emptiness opens the way for the heroes to transfer reality into the illusion of their own power, which is encouraging, and thus appropriated paves the way for an alienated self-image. With alienated emotional states, their sick needs and their sick actions are also alienated. In Karabeg, the angel inhabits the thoughts and hearts of the heroes and witnesses their danger in the conflicts of their own reason and emotions, thus revealing their slavish relationship towards higher goals or, on the other hand, towards the determination to follow their own destiny/nature.

This paper aims at analyzing utopias and dystopias in Last and First Men (1930) by William Olaf Stapledon. Taking into consideration that this narrative was already defined as a scientific romance and an anatomy with allegorical status, as well as McCarthy's observation that Stapledon’s writing resists simple categorization and that its classification as science fiction or utopian literature is inadequate, this paper suggests several definitions for Stapledon’s work. The author also takes into account the ongoing dispute between utopian studies and science fiction scholars about the strong interaction between utopia and science fiction in the twentieth century. The possibilities of applying the conceptual integration theory to such a complex work of fiction as Last and First Men is explored.

This study explores the concept of the Kingdom of Allah through the parable of the mustard seed in Mark 4:30-34, illustrating its growth from small beginnings to greatness. Using a qualitative method, the research examines how Mark's Gospel emphasizes faith, hope, and transformation. The Kingdom of Allah, as described in Romans 14:17, is about righteousness, peace, and joy through the Holy Spirit, bestowed upon those who surrender to divine guidance. Mark, though not named in the Gospel, is traditionally recognized as its author. He grew up in Jerusalem and was part of the first generation of Christians, collaborating with Paul, Barnabas, and Peter. The parable of the mustard seed highlights the potential for significant growth from something seemingly insignificant. This metaphor teaches that small faith can become powerful with proper nurturing. The study suggests that this parable encourages developing faith, fostering inclusivity, and striving for sustainable personal and community growth. The message remains relevant today, inspiring individuals to cultivate their faith and contribute positively to their communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the application of the parable of the Good Shepherd in contemporary life, focusing on the aspects of spiritual leadership, protection and sacrifice, recognition and obedience, rejection and acceptance, and resurrection and eternal life. Through literature analysis, this study identifies how the concept of the Good Shepherd in John 10:1-21 can be implemented in the daily lives of Christians. Jesus is portrayed as the Good Shepherd, who leads, protects and sacrifices Himself for His sheep. Spiritual leaders in modern times can take this example to guide and serve the congregation with genuine love and sacrifice. This study highlights the importance of knowing and obeying the voice of Jesus, discerning between truth and deception, and living in awareness of the promise of resurrection and eternal life. The results show that this parable remains relevant and provides meaningful guidance for the spiritual and practical lives of Christians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper conducts an anthropological study of Jesus’ metaphorical call to his disciples to emulate enslaved individuals who reliably carry out the business interests of their master, as conveyed in his Parable of the Talents (Mt 25, 14- 30). In the first part of the paper, the research is methodologically positioned concerning the relationship between anthropology and the Bible/biblical studies. In the second part, ethnographically collected data on the parable’s meaning is interpreted through the historical context of Matthew’s Christianity. The paper then demonstrates that the metaphor of profit-oriented slavery in the Parable of the Talents served to warn Matthew’s Christians not to falter in the face of adversities during Jesus’ absence and the inherent (Jewish) understanding of messianism. Matthew’s Christians are called by the parable to, like good and faithful slaves, overcome possible fears and urgently participate in bringing all nations into the status of their/Jesus’ disciples (28, 18-20). By showing that anthropological analysis may overcome methodological errors in the scholarly interpretation of the parable/Bible, the paper also aims to promote the contribution of anthropology to biblical studies and the collaboration between the two fields.

The aim of this article is to question whether the parable of the minas (Lk. 19,11–27) is a reflection by Luke on the delay of the parousia. After a review of research showing that the delay-oriented interpretation of the parable has been prevalent for some time, there are four parts to the argument. First, in agreement with the delay hypothesis, it is argued (against a recent social-scientific interpretation) that the parable has allegorical features when compared with the portrait of Jesus in Luke-Acts (the "Lukan" setting). Secondly, examination of the parable and its frame in Luke 19,11 shows that Luke cannot straightforwardly be understood as applying the parable to a particular, contemporaneous eschatological concern (the "rhetorical" setting). Thirdly, the expeditions of royal claimants to Rome do not supply evidence for the "delay" reading of the parable because these journeys were not sufficiently cumbersome or protracted to imply delay in the parable (the "Roman" setting). Fourthly and finally, the article engages in exegesis of Luke 19,11–27 itself to show that the details of the parable do not point to a concern about delay on Luke's part. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Present Paper introduces Kino as a man with responsibilities towards his family and values learnt from life. In this article, we bring out the true essence of life not being materialistic but by relinguishing a lavish life style . Kino is described as a self-learner with personal ideas, thoughts about his actions and place in his town. Kino’s acquisition of The Pearlfrom sea tests his character which has been already complicated by his ‘Pride, idealism, greed, strength, despair and honor’ which guides all men of those times. Kino wants to sell the pearl in order to send his son to school and prosper ; so he demands a fair price to buyers but the greedy towns men decides to rob him instead showcasing ‘The World’ corrupted values of the society. Steinbeck implicates Social Realism to the extent the society is exacting on the psyche of Kino’s small family and the subsequent realization of not being moral amidst the greed and corruption in making money for oneself. The irony is of implicating morality of men and is the crux of the novel. It tries to differentiate selfrespecting idealism of few to all men to greed. Kino wantins to live in reality, decides to throw the pearlaway. He flung it, to disassociate with the ‘sense of possession and insanity’, that drew him to greedy buyers. His act of decadence vanishes as he relinquishes his final rare asset ‘the pearl’. This renunciation helps him to regain peace for his soul.Hence,The Pearlis a ‘parable’wheresalvation is relevant to the current age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at analyzing utopias and dystopias in Last and First Men (1930) by William Olaf Stapledon. Taking into consideration that this narrative was already defined as a scientific romance and an anatomy with allegorical status, as well as McCarthy's observation that Stapledon's writing resists simple categorization and that its classification as science fiction or utopian literature is inadequate, this paper suggests several definitions for Stapledon's work. The author also takes into account the ongoing dispute between utopian studies and science fiction scholars about the strong interaction between utopia and science fiction in the twentieth century. The possibilities of applying the conceptual integration theory to such a complex work of fiction as Last and First Men is explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) is one of the most illustrious stories on human relations among the teachings of Jesus Christ. One of the critical questions among scholars is whether the parable should be understood as a mere story of loving a neighbour offering empathy and kindness to people in need, or as an allegory. This study interrogates the parable of the Good Samaritan as an allegory about the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. On that basis, the Priest and Levite may refer to the government; Jericho may represent the world; thieves represent the hostile forces of the world in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic; the Samaritan represents Jesus Christ, and the Inn represents the Church. The study argues that while the moral aspect of good neighborliness is emphasized in the parable, the parable may also be viewed as an allegory considered related to the experiences of people under the coronavirus disease. The study also utilized the narrative perspective as a theoretical framework to cross-examine the parable of the Good Samaritan in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study concluded that the discourses on the parable of the Good Samaritan remind people to love everyone, including their enemies, even in the context of health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic where for the most part, others were shunned in an egocentric manner.

The paper deals with the first decades in the work of Dr. Seuss (the pseudonym of Theodor Geisel, 1904–1991), one of the most prominent children’s authors of the 20th century. Seuss was not only the author of children’s tales, but also a talented artist who illustrated his own books and whose manner was deeply influenced by his 15-year experience as a cartoonist. In 1920–1940s he worked for different print media, from humor magazines to a political newspaper, drew cartoons and commercial advertisements. Our aim is to study the mutual influence of Seuss-thecartoonist and Seuss-the-writer and illustrator. Our main focus is the “bestiary” of Dr. Seuss, the animal characters of his cartoons and tales. Seuss created his first eccentric animals in the series of cartoons and anecdotes for a weekly satirical magazine Judge in 1927; he blended the Victorian tradition of nonsense and the features of newspaper cartoons and comic strips of the first decades of the 20th century. The motif of eccentricity is developed in the first children’s tales that Seuss published at the turn of the 1930–40s. The same motif is significantly transformed in his political cartoons for a daily newspaper PM in 1941–1942. Seuss puts the familiar animal images into the context of World War II and gives them different political meaning, from the totalitarian insanity of the Axis leaders to the carelessness and blindness of the “America First” supporters. Interestingly enough, Dr. Seuss used in his political cartoons some plot elements of his tales for children, as well as his old sketches and drawings. In its turn, his post-war tales are peculiar parables that absorb the political issues of the previous historical period. Creating his images of tyrants, Seuss makes use of the techniques of political cartoons. He puts his human and animal characters into the situations of tyranny or isolationism, that can be overcome with the help of common sense.

The parable of the works of N.V. Gogol as one of the most important elements of the writer's strategy is analyzed. Emphasis is placed both on its formal and content embodiment in the author's works. The formal part shows the important connection between the parable and the artistic detail of the literary work and the composition on the whole. The content part deals with the writer, who builds a complex system of conflicts and their role in the plot scheme. For the study, researchers consider it necessary to warn against a shallow analysis of Gogol's parable as a kind of vulgar form of reasonableness or teaching. Reading the author's texts shows that the parable departs from the classical model and resembles “die Parabel”, a form of parable in the literature of European modernism, which complicates and makes the edifying aspect less obvious. The parable element considered in this work should be studied not in general terms, but as an integral part of the poetics and artistic system of the author, which allows us to consider this phenomenon in more detail, as an individually mastered part of the composition of the work of a single author. Using this approach, it is possible to show Gogol as a phenomenon of world literature, and the reason for that is a complex system of parables, implemented in different ways in his literary works. This system absorbs particular elements of poetics using a variety of functions that form a single system of artistic originality of Gogol's texts. Moreover, it emphasizes the originality of texts and their dissimilarity from each other even within the author's collection.

In this article, a parable (which will be called as the Poet’s Parable from now on due to its subject) in the fourth volume of Mawlānā Muhammad Jalāl al-dīn Rūmī’s (d. 672/1273) Mathnawī, which consists of approximately twenty-five thousand seven hundred couplets will be discussed in terms of patronage. While reading and evaluating the story in terms of patronage, the commentary of Ahmed Avni Konuk (1868-1938), who annotated the entire Mathnawī will be used. The poet we encounter in the Poet’s Parable is a person who keeps his hopes for the world high, and therefore he faces with sadness and grief. However, Allah is the one who bestows freely. Narrowing hope down to worldly goods is not in accordance with Allah’s consent. Complying with the desires of not only the patrimonial ruler and but also the royal court and always being in expectation can harm the poet. It is a known fact that some poets yearn to achieve a worldly desire, such as obtaining better positions and make efforts to achieve this goal. When the desires do not come true, sadness will follow it. In this article, we will try to examine “the Story of the Poet” both in terms of patronage and Sufism. The proposition arisen during this study is as follows: “There is always a contradiction between our desires and the reality. This contradiction usually ends up with sadness. The one (“the poet” in this case) who cannot control his/her desires is doomed to blame his/her superior (“the vizier” according to the story) and be unhappy.” When the story is read, it will be seen that as long as the poet is willing to wait for blessings from man instead of God, he eventually will become disappointed.

Meseller, insan ve toplulukların yaşamlarında bazı önemli olayları vurgulayan, sonraki nesillerin bunlardan haberdar olmasını sağlayan kültür aktarımı vazifesi gören sözel unsurlardır. Kur’ân-ı Kerîm Arap dilinde indiğinden onun içinde de cahiliye dönemi Arap kültüründe yerleşmiş bazı meselleri görmek mümkündür. Kur’ân-ı Kerîm, tüm insanlığa rehber ve hidayet kaynağı olarak indirilmiş, Arapça bir kitap olduğu için onu anlamada bazı sorunlarla karşılaşılmış ve bu sorunları çözmek adına bazı çalışmalar yapılmıştır. Kimi çalışmalar onun dilsel yönüne yoğunlaşırken kimileri de anlam boyutunu, verdiği mesaj kısmını ön planda tutmuşlardır. Bazı ayetleri yorumlamada mesellerden yardım alan müfessirler olmuştur. Nitekim meseller hem dil hem de anlam boyutunun ortak olduğu kabul edilen ögelerdendir. Arapça konuşan toplumlar dışında Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’i anlama sorunu ortaya çıkınca tercüme tefsirler yazılmaya başlanmıştır. Bu çalışmada Şii-İmami çizgiye mensup bir müellif tarafından yazılan ilk Farsça tefsir olan Ravdu’l-Cinân esas alınarak bu tefsirdeki Arapça meseller ele alınmıştır. Tefsirde Farsça meseller olsa da Arapça mesellerin kullanımı ile belli bazı amaçlar gözetilmiştir. Bu meseller yoluyla kelimenin kökeni, etimoloji/sarf açısından kelimenin kalıbı ve nahiv ilmi açısından da kelimenin mahiyeti ve i‘râbı, cümlede işgal ettiği yer gibi hususlar açığa kavuşturulmuştur. Ayrıca bunların dışında da ayette geçen kelime ile doğrudan ilişkisi olmasa da ya içinde geçtiği için ya da anlam olarak karşılaması nedeniyle mesel kullanılmıştır. İşte tüm bu amaçlar örnekleriyle verilip değerlendirilecek, mesel kitaplarından asılları tahriç edilerek geçen diğer hususlar da ayrıca açıklanacak ve bir sonuçla çalışma sonlandırılacaktır.

Elizabeth Gaskell's Mary Barton (1848) employs Biblical parables to interrogate the social inequities faced by Manchester's urban poor. This analysis investigates Gaskell's interpretation of the Good Samaritan parable by extending the idea of hospitality beyond sympathy to active intervention designed to help a stranger in trouble. Close readings of four key episodes explore the Good Samaritan parable through Esther's meetings with John, Jem, and Mary, each of whom know her, dismiss her as a fallen woman, and ignore her warnings about impending danger, in effect failing to provide her with hospitality. The Sturgis couple, although strangers, are true Good Samaritans, extending radical welcome and care to Mary and preventing the events Esther warned of. As a result, both Mary and Jem are transformed, and together they put these insights into practice in society. As is true of the Good Samaritan, unconditional hospitality to the stranger exemplifies Jesus's call in the parable to "go and do likewise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We shall define literary parables and their values as a type of discourse using illustrations from the authors of Albanian literature Anton Pashku and Migjeni as a case study. The parable is a literary figure, an archetype that can be found everywhere as a necessity of resemblance and how it fulfills its functions through the example that serves as the primary instrument. Only if the example has the value of a precedent does the ancient definition "parable" have its solution function and granting of the right. The parable is a type of early origin discourse. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Greek and Persian literature. They emerge at various ages, in various provinces, under various conditions, and from various cultural and ethnic realities. Literary parables are a common literary style throughout space and time, serving as an effective and fascinating way of human civilization representation. However, we will focus on their scientific definition, as well as their genesis as a form of discourse, as a prerequisite for the message to be transmitted later, in the literary works of notable Albanian writers Migjeni and Anton Pashku. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The high-quality commentary of Joel Marcus on Mark's Gospel contains at least seven illuminating comments on what he calls 'the parable of the child' (Mark 9:36–37). His final comment pushes beyond a mere moral exhortation to welcome or show hospitality to little children. These parables, like others, make Jesus vividly present, and so reveal God, to whom Jesus is 'strongly connected.' Marcus should have recognized more clearly the call to recognize in vulnerable, little children the disclosed presence of God who sent his Son into the world. The face of even insignificant children brings us the face of God. The 'mystery of the child' reflects the 'mystery of God.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, I bring Terrence Malick's 2019 film, A Hidden Life, into conversation with two of philosopher Paul Ricoeur's concepts: (1) the "social imaginary" as the interplay of ideals, images, ideologies and utopias, and (2) Ricoeur's description of the genre of "parable" as a narrative-metaphor which provokes a "re-orientation by disorientation" within an audience's imagination. Drawing from Ricoeur's thought, I apply a theological film criticism I call "theocinematics" to A Hidden Life in order to call attention to the ways in which the cinematic form itself engenders sociopolitical and theological thought. Through emphasizing film aesthetics in my analysis, I am ultimately suggesting that A Hidden Life as a cinematic parable has the potential power to affect and inform our social imaginaries for the good. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article posits a way forward for church-based Christian Education following the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns. Drawing on the writings of Kierkegaard, it is proposed that both a "leap of faith" and an "interruption" of linear learning might establish a more authentic way of relating to children's spirituality. Including examples from practice, the icon is visited as a pedagogical tool that inspires possibility and wrestles with fixed ideas to inspire new meanings for children today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are apparent similarities between the parables contained in the Gospels and those found in the Qur'ān, which provide their audiences with illustrations of complex religious concepts and moral teachings through the imagery of everyday life. Based on the form-critical analysis of the Gospel Parable of the Sower and some Qur'ānic parables, this article aims to detect defining similarities and differences between the Gospels and Sūrat al-Baqarah and illuminate details about the historical and geographic context in which the two texts originated. Based on the findings of the comparison, this article will argue that the Qur'ānic text represents a genuine continuation of the biblical text. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author undertakes a study of the symbolic-religious conflict, a man and Viy, as a structural and content basis for the integrity of the novella Viy . In Gogol's “paradoxical negative realism”, the “squabbling of life” is depicted from an eschatological perspective. The heterogeneity of the conflict is predetermined by the heterogeneity of Gogol's vision of life: behind the vulgar relations of vulgar people, an existential world, invisible to the characters, shines through, in which an irreal enemy awaits a person in order not to allow this person to avoid meeting with himself. The basis of the conflict of the novella Viy is the subterranean phenomena of the universe, which are at different stages of accepting evil. The mutual negation of the vulgarity of evil (Khoma) and the fantasy of supernatural evil (Viy) does not seem to Gogol absolute, just as the scenario of their movement towards each other does not seem impossible. Analysis of the conflict allows us to assert that Gogol, as a “prophet and philosopher of Orthodox culture”, according to V. Zenkovsky's definition, declares himself already in the story of 1834, and Russian literature owes the “implantation of the religious theme” to this particular work.

In The Prince with the Sad Eyes, the short story that we will here interpret as a parable in the context of Jung's theory of archetypes, Andrić shows a woman torn between her real and idealized partner, and her suffering as a consequence of a lack of discernment in the matters of the heart, a lack of self-knowledge, and most of all, the influences of the archetypes of the collective unconscious - the animus and the shadow. Andrić thematizes projection as a psychological mechanism of falling in love, which rules interpersonal relationships in other contexts, too. Through this woman's infatuation with the prince, Andrić sheds light on phenomena that take place between men and women every day: projecting, expecting, and disappointment experienced as betrayal. One cannot live with the animus, the archetypal figure responsible for falling in love: once a relationship becomes reality (sexuality is here a metonymic replacement for the whole of their real life, the reality of a relationship) all projections start disappearing and in most cases, are replaced with their negative counterpart, as archetypes are essentially dual in meaning. In a parable about the permanent misunderstanding between sexes in the process of falling in love, Andrić uses biblical signals (the tree of knowledge, miraculous healing, the genre of the parable) to point to the wrongness of the depicted world, that is the imaginary heaven, pursued in the wrong way and in the wrong place.

Parables are considered to be an effective tool in a psychologist’s work with parents of children with abnormal development. As a kind of metaphor, parables actuate neurodynamic mechanisms of the personality’s reflection of actual life issues. The use of parables is specific, depending on the psychodynamic stage of the family with a child who has some developmental problems. The requests of parents of children with abnormal development were classified and the parables were matched to each underlying request type. The use of various options of work with stories by psychologist in the therapeutic process is possible. The authors give some examples of parables at the end.

Ebû Nuaym önde gelen İslâm âlimleri arasında yer almaktadır. Kaynaklar kendisinden Tâcu’l-Muhaddisîn, el-İmâmu’l-Celîl, el-Hâfızu’l-Kebîr, eş-Şeyh, Müverrih ve Muhaddisu’l-Asr şeklinde bahsetmiştir. Konumuzun ana mihverini oluşturan ve 800 kadar zâhid ve sûfînin hayatlarına yer verilen Hilyetü’l-Evliyâ’sı alanının en güzel örneklerinden birisidir. Bu eserinde kitabının hacmini genişletmemek amacıyla sadece meşhur zâhidleri ele almıştır. Ebû Nuaym, Ḥilyetü’l-Evliyâʾdaki malumatın çoğunu üstadlarından ve muasırı diğer ulemadan derlemiş, az bir kısmını da Buhârî ve Müslim’in başını çektiği hadis kaynaklarından aktarmıştır. Müellifimizin eserinde karşımıza çıkan meseller günlük hayatımızda hemen her alanda muhatap olunan bir konudur. Hz. Peygamber, Arap dilinin en üst düzeyde konuşulduğu bir toplumda dünyaya gelmiş ve yetişmiştir. Bu sebeple Arapça’nın inceliklerine vakıf olup konuşmalarında zaman zaman mesellere yer verirdi. Bu noktada da ihtiyaçtan fazla konuşmaz ve göstermelik hareketlere asla başvurmazdı. Resûlullah’ın konunun daha iyi anlaşılması ve kavranması amacıyla meselleri kullandığı malumdur. Burada Ebû Nuaym’ın Hilyetü’l-Evliyâ adlı eserinde yer alan mesellere dair bazı örnekler verilmiştir. Makale yazılırken Ebû Nuaym’ın hayatı ile ilgili olarak hazırlanmış olan klasik kaynaklar taranmakla birlikte interaktif ortamdaki programlar da çalışma konumuz olan mesellere ulaşmamız konusunda büyük katkı sağlamıştır. Mesellerin daha iyi ve doğru anlaşılması bağlamında gerekli görülen hususlarda kısa izahlara da makalede yer verilmeye çalışılmıştır.

The article attempts to reveal some probable biographical aspects of two artistic and philosophical dialogues of Hryhoriy Skovoroda, written in 1783: Archstrategist Michael’s Struggle with Satan and The Devil’s Controversy with Varsava. The dedication of the first work to Mykhaylo Kovalyns’kyy and the later preface to this dialogue could have been inspired by the family tragedy of the Kovalyns’kyy couple – the death of their young son. It is probably not by chance that H. Skovoroda addressed the theme of the Resurrection three times in the preface, persistently reminding that the death of the body is not the end of human life, but only a rough appearance of the end. Everyone who crosses the threshold of apparent death actually passes to a new life, so the father of the dead son had to believe that in time he would meet his beloved child again, and already forever. The second dialogue is perhaps the most autobiographical in H. Skovoroda’s writings. The lines of both protagonists of this work (Daimon and Varsava) sound like the inner voices of the author of the dialogue. At the same time, according to one of the hypotheses, the prototype of Daimon can be considered not just some abstract force of doubt that was either outside the soul and consciousness of H. Skovoroda, or within his rational understanding of the metaphysics of the universe, but a specific person – Samuyil Myslavs’kyy, a younger friend of H. Skovoroda during the years of study at the Kyiv Mohyla Academy, and later the bishop and head of the Kharkiv College, because of whom, perhaps, the “official” pedagogical career of our philosopher ended forever. In general, the issue of the biographical “fullness” of certain prose works of H. Skovoroda is extremely complex and debatable in Ukrainian literary studies. Perhaps the versions highlighted in the article will somewhat bring the two “heavenly” dialogues of 1783 closer to their “earthly” reader’s perception.

One of the most debated problems in the history of philosophy is the problem of evil. Since classical times, philosophers have started to think about evil, a phenomenon that exists in the world and that almost everyone encounters. With questions such as why there is evil in the world we live in or how we can deal with evil, the problem of evil began to be examined philosophically. However, this is not only unique to the history of philosophy, it is also a topic of discussion that religions with a tradition of revelation have dealt with. Religions such as Judaism, especially Christianity and Islām have to some extent dealt with this problem. The means by which these religions respond to this problem is different from that of philosophical explanation, in which the process of reasoning and each philosopher's own logical process is heavily involved. Philosophers have tried to explain evil within the framework of neo-platonism and argued that it is actually the absence of goodness. While matter takes its most concrete form at the lowest levels, it moves far away from the good. Therefore, distancing from the perfect brings evil. Scholastics and Islāmic theologians, on the other hand, have tried to show that the evil in the world is not incompatible and contradictory with the existence of God by providing explanations that are partially in line with the doctrine of their religion. These theologians sometimes went beyond the framework of the doctrine and carried their reasoning tools quite far. Philosophers and theologians have tried to act according to the religious tradition to which they belonged in offering some solutions to this problem. Nevertheless, they did not always take the religious tradition into consideration when providing these answers and often tried to produce philosophical answers. In the modern period, the problem of evil has been seen as the soft belly of the Abrahamic religions. Since the seventeenth century, it has become one of the strongest atheistic arguments and has been used intensively today. Academically, this issue has generally been dealt with within the framework of philosophy of religion. It seems possible to say that a Qur'an-oriented study is relatively rare compared to the philosophical one. Therefore, in this study, the researcher has tried to focus on some Qur'anic verses that can be associated with the problem of evil and to show the relationship between the concepts used in the Qur'an in this context. He then discusses whether some of the Qur'anic parables can be evaluated within the framework of theodicy. In addition, the researcher has tried to reveal the differences between the arguments and style in the Qur'an and philosophical theodicy, also called systematic theodicy, throughout this study.

This essay explores James Joyce's engagement with Biblical parables in Dubliners. Like parables, Joyce's stories employ realistic situations, vivid imagery, and puzzling endings to prompt readers into moral reflection. Joyce's stories also draw upon specific Biblical parables. In "The Boarding House," Joyce inverts the Parable of the Ten Virgins to illuminate the disconnect between love and duty in Irish society. In "A Painful Case," he draws upon the Parable of the Great Banquet to highlight the implications of individual and societal inhospitality. Examining Joyce's parabolic method adds to the growing conversation about Joyce's sustained interest in Scripture and Christian thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of RumeliDE Journal of Language & Literature Research / RumeliDE Dil ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi is the property of RumeliDE Uluslararasi Hakemli Dil & Edebiyat Arastirmalari Dergisi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Language & Literary Studies / Folia Linguistica & Litteraria is the property of Journal of Language & Literary Studies / Folia Linguistica & Litteraria and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Bu çalışmada İsrâiliyat’ın çerçevesine dâhil edilebileceğini düşündüğümüz rivayetler hakkında Mâtürîdî’nin ne düşündüğü, söz konusu rivayetlere karşı tefsirinde nasıl bir yaklaşım sergilediği ele alınmaya çalışılmıştır. Son asırda Mâtürîdî hakkında birçok çalışma yapılmış olmasına rağmen yaptığımız araştırmalara göre onun İsrâiliyat hakkındaki yaklaşımını kuşatıcı şekilde ele alan, kategorize eden ve örneklendiren bir çalışma bulunmamaktadır. Bazı çalışmalarda Mâtürîdî’nin tefsirinde İsrâilî olduğu düşünülerek yer verilen rivayetler birkaç başlık altında tasnif edilmeye çalışılmışsa da bu tasnifin yeterli olduğunu söylemek kanaatimizce mümkün değildir. Bu çalışmalarda İsrâiliyat olarak aktarılan örnekler, görebildiğimiz kadarıyla Mâtürîdî’nin ya eleştirdiği ya sükût ettiği ya da doğru olup olmadığı bilinemez dediği rivayetlerden oluşmaktadır. Dolayısıyla İsrâiliyat çerçevesine dâhil edilebilecek bir rivayeti Mâtürîdî’nin ayetlerin anlaşılmasında yardımcı unsur olarak kullandığına dair bir örneğe söz konusu çalışmalarda yer verilmemiştir. Mâtürîdî hakkında yapılan bazı çalışmalarda onun İsrâiliyat hakkındaki düşüncesine kısmen değinilmiş olsa da özel olarak İsrâiliyat’ın konu edildiği, hassaten İsrâiliyat’ın tarihçesinin belirlenmeye çalışıldığı araştırmalarda Mâtürîdî’nin sürece dâhil edilmediği görülmektedir. Mâtürîdî geçmiş toplumlar, peygamberler hakkında sadece Kur’an’da yer alan bilgilere veya Hz. Peygamber’e aidiyeti kesin olan rivayetlere itibar edilmesi gerektiğini belirtir. Ona göre geçmiş ümmetlerle ilgili bu iki kaynaktan gelen bilgiler Hz. Peygamber’in peygamberliğini ispat etmektedir. Bu iki kaynak dışında nakledilen bilgilerin önceki ümmetlerin kitaplarında yer alan bilgilerle çelişmesi ise o dinlere mensup insanların Hz. Peygamber’in peygamberliğini kabul etmemesine neden olur. Dolayısıyla böyle olumsuz bir durumun ortaya çıkmaması için ayetlerin izahında bu tarz rivayetlerden kaçınmak gerekir. İsrâiliyat kavramını kullanmasa da bu tarz ifadelerinden dolayı Mâtürîdî’nin İsrâiliyat hakkında değerlendirmeler yaptığı, teorik olarak İsrâiliyat’a karşı çıktığı söylenebilir. Mâtürîdî’nin bu konuda Mu‘tezilî âlim Ebu Bekir el-Esam’a yapmış olduğu bazı atıflar da, onun İsrâiliyat hakkındaki yaklaşımının oluşmasında Esam’ın etkisinin olabileceğini akla getirmektedir. Bu çalışma, Mâtürîdî’nin Te’vîlâtü’l-Kur’ân adlı eserinde yukarıda teorik olarak çerçevesi anlatılmaya çalışılan yaklaşım tarzı ile kıssaların anlatıldığı ayetlerin izahında yer verdiği, İsrâiliyat kaynaklı olabileceğini düşündüğümüz rivayetler üzerinden gerçekleştirilmiştir. Çalışmada Mâtürîdî’nin İsrâiliyat’a yer verip vermemesi hakkında doğru-yanlış, iyi-kötü şeklinde bir yargıya varmaktan ziyade, Te’vîlât özelinde iç tutarlılığın olup olmadığı üzerinde değerlendirmelerde bulunulmuştur. Mâtürîdî’nin tefsirinde yer verdiği İsrâilî olabileceğini düşündüğümüz rivayetler beş başlık altında kategorize edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Böylelikle de onun pratik anlamda İsrâiliyat’a yaklaşımı tespit edilmeye çalışılmıştır. İlk başlık altında Mâtürîdî’nin ayetin izahında istifade ettiği düşünülen örnekler yer verilmiştir. Söz konusu örnekler kanaatimizce çok fazla olmasa da Mâtürîdî’nin, tefsirinde ayetlerin izahında istifade etmek amacıyla İsrâiliyat’a yer verdiğini göstermektedir. Dolayısıyla bu örnekler Mâtürîdî’nin İsrâiliyat’ı tamamen reddetmediğini göstermektedir. Aynı zamanda bu örneklerin varlığı İsrâiliyat konusunda Te’vîlât’ta teorinin pratiğe tam manasıyla mutabık olmadığını göstermektedir. Te’vilât’taki bu durumu kanaatimizce Mâtürîdî’nin tefsir-te’vil teorisiyle izah etmekte de mümkün gözükmemektedir. İkinci başlık altında ise Mâtürîdî’nin naklettikten sonra hiçbir değerlendirmede bulunmadığı rivayetlere yer verilmiştir. Bu örnekler onun söz konusu rivayetleri tamamen benimsediği anlamına gelmese de sükût etmesi zımnen de olsa ayetlerin bu rivayetler çerçevesinde anlaşılmasının mahzurlu olmayacağını ima ettiği anlamına gelmektedir. Nakletmeden bilmeye gerek yok dediği ve eleştirdiği rivayetlere yer verilen üçüncü ve dördüncü başlıklar altında ele alınan örnekler onun bu rivayetleri tasvib etmediğini göstermektedir.

The purpose of the article is to define the genre features of Patrick Süskind’s novel as a postmodern work. The task is to determine the artistic components, which will serve as a basis for establishing the genre affiliation of the analyzed work. The study employs the elements of formal and cultural-historical methods of analysis. It is emphasized that the peculiarity of this novel is its genre eclecticism. It is noted that the work actualizes the Faustian image of the human/superhuman, who is marginal and disadvantaged, rejected by society, extremely talented, but has no moral values. The work consists of four parts referring to different periods of life and the work of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (childhood and learning the craft; self-reflection in the cave and return to people; the culmination of activities as a perfumer and criminal in Grasse; his death). Each part falls into the canons of several genres; while intertwined quite chaotically, the elements of genres form a holistic picture nonetheless. It is established that the events of the novel are tied to the events of the 18th century; the historical background is outlined both through specific dates of the protagonist’s life, important milestones in his life and career, tied to individual historical events and processes, and also through artistic descriptions of guild manufacturing, the social hierarchy of the society, urban life in Europe. However, Süskind’s work cannot be considered a historical novel in the classical sense of the genre (the plot is not centered around a historical event or a historical figure), thus literary critics rightfully interpret the work as a pseudo-historical novel. Detailed descriptions of the specifics of the social and domestic life of a child, adolescent, and apprentice signify the social and domestic novel, however, the protagonist’s life and his actions can hardly be considered typical. The plot of Süskind’s work develops conforming to the genre canon of the crime novel. We draw your attention to the fact that, according to the marketing definition, the analyzed work is defined as “a romantic detective”. Yet in accordance with the detective genre canon, the protagonist must be a detective, who unravels the crime and finds the killer. In Süskind’s novel, the main character is a criminal, and the detective is not even formally represented, which gives us a reason to classify the analyzed work as a crime / noir novel. Gothic elements (the topos of the cemetery, the pervasive motif of death, the protagonist living in gloomy places, one way or another connected with death, etc.) also point to the genre of a crime novel. The novel describes in detail the features of the craftsmanship, and the life of the apprentice, and thus the text acquires a distinct quality of the occupational novel. Despite the fact that a significant part of the text is devoted to the description of the profession of a perfumer, the analyzed work is still difficult to label as an occupational novel, because it lacks the motif of work for the benefit of society, and the image of the main character being a genius perfumer-killer is far from the positive image of a worker, which is determining for a genre of occupational novel. Philosophical motives are an integral part of Süskind’s novel. The worldview and system of moral and ethical values are implicated and in a rather ironic context presented through references to famous scientists and philosophers of the Enlightenment, which in one way or another refer to the scientific picture of the world, criticism of the church, atheism, freethinking. The canon of the parable used in the second chapter enables the artistic presentation of the spiritual transformations of the main character and the formation of his axiology. As the hero stays in a cave, dreaming in the position of the embryo, it is perceived as his death and rebirth, the time spent in there (“seven years”) is similar to the time of the Divine creation of the world and, respectively, implicitly marks the protagonist’s Faustian claims to the role of Creator. In Süskind’s novel, there are also elements of an educational novel, the conventions of the picaresque genre. The transformation of Grenouille’s execution into a collective orgy is presented in the manner of the parable genre with elements of the absurd. The fourth part of the novel, in which Grenouille returns to Paris, corresponds to canons of the genres of horror and parable. Written in accordance with various genre canons, the parts are implicitly enraged by the motif of Faustianism as a desire to know the mysteries of the world, messianism, and apostasy.

The article substantiates the definition of the genre of Dal’s stories and novellas as a story-parable that carries a lesson about the laws of human life. In Dal’s prose emphasis is not so much on the exact external “physiognomy” of human types, but on the deep moral and existential content that is revealed to the reader with their help. The genre specificity of Dal’s prose reflects his Christian worldview, which is similar to the popular one and enriched with reflection and a special artistic gift of the writer. The author of the article demonstrates the reason for the inadequate perception of Dal’s prose in N. Chernyshevsky’s critical assessments. In addition, he refutes the frequent statement that Dal’s “Pictures from Russian Life,” which were to allegedly cover the entire national life, were scattered into fragmented sketches and were not permeated with a single thought. In fact, these “pictures,” although extremely diverse in their subject matter due to the diversity of life itself, are internally clearly united in their general meaning. Dal selected bright stories, generally reflecting the general moral life of the Russian people from the most positive side. Each of these stories carries a deep Christian meaning: in each of them there is a person overcoming or paying his sin, as well as repentance and a general transfiguration and renewal of the soul. Sometimes he shows also the heroic features of the national character. In Dal’s stories-parables an indication of the inner complexity, the dialectic of life, always full of internal contradictions and incomprehensibility, often appears. Dal was the author who accepted the need for updating the genre of the parable. This need was due to the fact that the reader wanted to preserve the genres of traditional culture (fairy tales and parables), but in a new literary form.

Copyright of ULUM Journal of Religious Inquiries is the property of ULUM Journal of Religious Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Does the warning that closes Matthew's version of the great banquet (Matt 22:1–14) indicate that the population of hell exceeds, even far exceeds, that of heaven? This article sets out the allegorizing account of a royal banquet found in Matthew. The second set of guests stands for members of the Church, warned in most serious, apocalyptic terms to produce good works which are worthy of their calling and which will be recognized at final judgment. Taken with similar parables in Matthew, that of the king's banquet invites an appropriate response rather than offers information, still less, precise information about the final state of all Christians and other human beings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The parable of the talents in Matt 25:14–30 has been often interpreted using either the lens of social identity or virtue ethics, respectively. However, a careful integrative analysis indicates the intrinsic interrelation of social identity and virtue in four aspects. Through such an integration of social identity and the notions of virtue and the good life, Matthew redefines social identity for the Matthean in-group from a social status to a virtue status, from the quantity of one's giftings to the quality of one's character, and from a mere sense of belonging to a pursuit of human flourishing through virtue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nishitani and Neoplatonism both argue that overcoming the nihilism of non-being requires a confrontation with, and cultivation of, the experience of nothingness. This paper argues that the appreciation of nothingness is best realized in the practice of dialectic into dialogos, as adapted from the Socratic tradition. We argue that dialectic equips the self for the confrontation with nihilism, and is best suited to transforming the privative experience of nothingness into a superlative, collective experience of no-thingness. The practice of dialectic into dialogos exapts the nature of the self as a synthesis of being and non-being, and possibility and necessity, in and through its relationship to others, and to its own otherness within self-transcendence. Dialectic into dialogos can thereby become a central philosophical practice for responding to our contemporary meaning crisis by affording a generative process of meaning-making that can lead to personal and cultural transformation and communion within the culture – renewing communitas for new communities.

This article analyses the influence of Franz Kafka on contemporary writers who engage with the climate emergency, focusing in particular on the Australian writer Richard Flanagan and the Polish author Olga Tokarczuk. This transnational corpus is warranted not only by the scale of the crisis, but also by Kafka's status as a writer whose work refuses to sit neatly within the borders of a nation or 'Nationalsprache'. The article details both writers' direct allusions to Kafka, and — under the rubrics of 'bounds', 'scales' and 'parables' — identifies aesthetic techniques they adopt and adapt from his work. These include a disruption of the inside and outside of texts, the rendering of complexity in pithy or parabolic form, and a concern with the mechanisms of denial. The extent of this engagement with Kafka, I argue, suggests that his literary models are uniquely useful in the struggle to give form to the 'Anthropocene'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Luke's Gospel is famous for its impressive series of parallels between John the Baptist and Jesus, including a number of matching points in the ethical teaching of the two. This study, which joins the spate of works highlighting similarities between persons and texts within this Gospel, argues that John's preaching to the crowds in the vicinity of the Jordan river in 3:7–14 and Jesus's parable of the rich man and Lazarus in 16:19–31 represent one such point of correspondence. It accomplishes this objective by demonstrating that a number of lexical and thematic elements in 3:7–14 are echoed in 16:19–31. This leads to the suggestion that Jesus's message, transmitted through this parable, can be interpreted as a reprise of John's preaching at the beginning of the narrative. Since John is portrayed in Luke 3 as a prophet of repentance in the face of the impending judgment, the similarity of Jesus's teaching in Luke 16 to that of John emphasises Jesus's role as a prophet, frequently elaborated in Luke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the significant themes of the novel The Humiliated and the Insulted is the father’s curse, marked throughout the text by a high degree of emotionality. The novel describes two similar stories: the one of Nelly’s mother and Natasha’s. Both escaped from home, both were cursed by their fathers. However, there are also differences: while one father forgave, the other not. In the article, the theme of the father’s curse is revealed by comparing these two stories with the famous parable of the prodigal son, with which the novel presents visible parallels. The parable is presented as a standard for proper behavior, and in its comparison, we can say how the hero should have behaved and how he did in the novel. While the images of “prodigal children” recall each other, it is the behavior of parents that draws a significant difference between Dostoevsky’s plot and the parable. The presence or absence of the father’s curse is revealed as one of the main factors determining the fate of all the characters of the story.

This article examines biblical allusions in Simone Weil's "On the Right Use of School Studies," in which she argues that study can train our attention to God and neighbor. Focusing on Weil's use of Jesus' teachings that mention bread, meals, and table service, this article reveals an underlying theme of Eucharist (communion) in Weil's essay on study. Together with Weil's comment that studies are "like a sacrament," this analysis suggests that Weil offers a "eucharistic pedagogy" shaped by her mystical theology of Eucharist, a theology itself shaped by George Herbert's English-language poem "Love." Throughout, the article compares Weil's original French with its English translation, noting where the translation obscures her use of the Bible or her theology, and it also examines the Greek biblical text, since Weil read the New Testament in its Greek original. The article concludes with a critique of Weil's educational vision, which relies on a dyadic vision of eucharist, and suggests that a communal vision of eucharist can support a social vision of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines narrative strategies in their historical dynamics. It singles out the so-called narrative worldview and the ethos of narrativity as basic parameters of a narrative strategy. Heroic legends and fairy tales inherited a precedent worldview and the ethos of peace from mythology. The post-mythological development of religious consciousness leads to a narrative strategy of the parable type that implies an imperative world model and prescriptive ethos, as implemented, for example, in the Old Testament. The narrative strategy of the New Testament stands out due to the constructive combination of the precedent worldview and a fundamentally new ethos of personal solidarity. The practice of telling jokes and ancient Greek adventure novels develop a circumstantial world model and the ethos of self-realization. Finally, the classic novel explores the probabilistic worldview and becomes a basis of several new narrative strategies that vary in their ethos.

There are parables with the names of colours in Czech that compare the “colour of people - of the human face, human skin”, of the colour of anything else to the colour of anything in naturę, of natural scenery: to the colour of plants (fiuty jako pampeliśka — as yellow as a dandelion, źluty jako citron — as yellow as a lemon / lemon coloured), to the colours of animals or birds (fiuty jako kanarek - as yellow as a canary / canary coloured) or to the colours of anything else in natural scenery (śedy jako morę - as grey as a billów, śedy jako hvezdny vecer/hvezdne nebe - as grey as an evening sky with stars), or the parables can compare the colour of the human body (face) to the colour of some things fiuty jako vosk — as yellow as a wax /, źluty jako pergamen - as yellow as vellum, źluty jako pivo - as yellow as a beer, śedy jako ocel — as grey as steel/steel-grey, śedy jako popel - as grey as ashes / cinereous). Authors of belles-lettres or of poetry using parable-comparison aROVAwith the words źluty / yellow usually depict the human visage as a symptom of illness or caducity (jeho oblićej byl źluty jako vosk - his face was yellow as wax' byl źluty jako per- gamen - he wasyellow as vellum) or they etiolate the people (zuby mel źlutejako citron - his teeth were lemon yellowed, dostał źloutenku a byl źluty jako kanarek - he suffered from jaundice and was canary coloured). Using the word śedy / grey in parable-compari- son authors sometimes depict people of nasty appearance (oblićej śedy jako prach / jako popel - face as grey as dust // as ashes / cindereous), but sometimes they picture somet- hing nice in the human appearance (pći śede jako hvezdne nebe / jako morę / jako obld- zky - eyes as grey as an evening sky with stars / billowi pebbles).

The paper presents an analysis of the persuasive use of the narrative in the Lüshi Chunqiu using approaches of rhetoric narratology and rhetorical criticism. Twenty-one narratives are identified as vehicles of indirect persuasion and put on the mimetic and thematic scales to show how their relation to reality and history corresponds to their rhetorical use in discourse. Three of those narratives, exhibiting typical traits of historical anecdotes, are analysed in detail in their original context, to prove their parabolic function. The author argues that parabolic use of the narrative, including fables and parables, but also anecdotes and historical anecdotes, forms an important part of the Warring States period tradition of political and philosophical discourse. The author further proposes to use the term “parabolic narrative” to describe all such instances of using narratives in indirect persuasion. These can be found not only in the Lüshi Chunqiu, but also in other important works of the period, such as Zhuangzi, Zhanguoce, or Han Feizi.

This essay explores the connection between adaptation and parable in Chigozie Obioma's debut novel The Fishermen (2015). Obioma's adaptation of parable revises this narrative form as radically relational. This revision of parable is tied to an equally relational understanding of adaptive processes. Using parable as the frame for its complex mixture of Igbo and Yoruba mythology, Biblical stories, and Greek and Roman myth, among others, enables the novel to reinterpret all these sources in the context of postcolonial Nigeria. This process thereby challenges the belief that we can dispel colonial power structures by simply rejecting canonical stories and their discursive frameworks and it suggests, instead, a notion of identity as relational and transient. Ultimately, the novel proposes an ethics of relationality that can help to re-assess processes of revision and their political and cultural impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]