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The arts are the effect and material evidence of the civilizations of advanced and high-end peoples, and it is the common language among the peoples of the whole world. It is a language capable of understanding and communication, and it refers to various forms of activity or production, which may or should sometimes generate aesthetic effects from it. Therefore, the work, energy, creativity and time that creates Susanna embroidery makes it a living art and a fine art that lives over time and maintains a high position in the souls, minds and hearts of all people, regardless of their tastes. The city of (Bukhara) in Central Asia was distinguished during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries AH (18th and 19th century AD) with a distinctive artistic style in the manufacture of textiles in particular, especially embroidered textiles. This is what is known as Suzana or Suzani, which are large embroidered textiles that are hung on walls, in addition to their use in various furniture functions such as pillow covers, beds and prayer rugs. The art of Susanna contains many aesthetic, artistic, expressive and symbolic values. In our work as designers for textile printing, we must take advantage of those plastic values and work to enrich the field of designing one-piece textiles for women by drawing inspiration from the aesthetic and plastic values of Susanna’s art and the values, connotations and distinctive features it carries. To be an important source of inspiration for one-piece designs for women with a new aesthetic vision

Despite the elaborative nature of Theodotionic Susanna, it is not merely an expansion. The narrative details of the different versions betray consistent institutional differences. One notable difference is the near elimination of the public synagogue as a place of assembly, and instead this source speaks of a more generalized, associational assembly that meets in Joachim's house. The Theodotionic version's associational, domestic assembly space is closer to the polity of a diasporic collegia assembly. Conversely, in the Old Greek, the perverse elders preside over an assembly building, which is at one point designated as "the synagogue of the city" (OG Sus 28). The Old Greek's emphasis on a civic synagogue is closer to Palestinian Jewish texts, despite the exilic setting of this story. While such institutional designations are more of a spectrum than a binary difference, such difference in outlook offers invaluable data regarding the contexts of the two versions of this Danielic composition and the parallel presentation of these two different types of synagogues at such an early date is significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groups and individuals known as “elders” (Greek: presbyteros, gerousia; Hebrew: zaqan) are often found in ancient Jewish texts and inscriptions. Their ubiquity in such texts and inscriptions is accompanied by very little information about their actual function. Generally, this may be because we have some kind of impression that a group of older men in patriarchal and androcentric societies might form a kind of local authority and would naturally be referred to as elders. In the works known as Judith and Susanna, female protagonists are set against or in contrast to elders. There is a presumption that these elders are an influential, all-male, locally authoritative, collective. This article will explore power dynamics within these texts where the elders function as a specific narrative device, often as a foil to exemplary female characters, and consider how this gendered reading of such a group forms contemporary understandings of ancient Judaism.

The characters in a story can function as vehicles that carry the message(s) that the implied author intends to convey to the implied readers as they read the story. Characterisation is, as it were, the artistry the implied author uses to shift the intended reader’s worldview. Whilst there have been many insightful scholarly contributions on Susanna, the use of character focalisation and its possible function have never been explored. It remains open for investigation. This article examines the way in which characters are focalised in Susanna and how their role contributes to the implied reader’s ability to grasp the possible intended message of the story. The article concludes that focalisation offers a useful interpretive angle from which Susanna can be studied. Contribution: The article proves that characterisation and the narrator’s role in the story are not a literary decoration to the text but a well-intended process that aims at inviting participation and decision-making from the implied reader.

This article investigates a short Greek Christian homily, from the 4th century CE, by an anonymous Cappadocian preacher on the narrative of Susanna in Dan 13 LXX. The homily is simply titled, On Susanna (CPG 4567), and has been erroneously transmitted as a work of John Chrysostom. The purpose of this article is to examine more closely the construction of Susanna in the homily, with specific reference to the use of masculinity, psychic typology and finally, the construction of early Christian salvation history. After addressing, in brief, some matters of canonicity, a close reading of On Susanna is given. It is demonstrated that the Cappadocian strategically constructs Susanna like a virginal Christian martyr and ascetic, with the aim of highlighting her masculine steadfastness and dominance in her contest (agōn) against the elders. A significant second move that is made in the homily is to position the masculine Susanna as a type for the soul of the individual, which should also be guarded against the onslaught of sin and the passions. Contribution: This Christian reconstruction of Susanna brings the subjectivity of the individual listener in the audience, and the character of Susanna, in close proximity to one another. In effect, by internalising the narrative of Susanna into the realm of the soul, the anonymous Cappadocian preacher is able to utilise a layered biblical salvation history that incorporates not only narratives from the Bible, but also the audience member’s own individual narrative and struggles into the grander scheme of salvation history.

This article investigates a short Greek Christian homily, from the 4th century CE, by an anonymous Cappadocian preacher on the narrative of Susanna in Dan 13 LXX. The homily is simply titled, On Susanna (CPG 4567), and has been erroneously transmitted as a work of John Chrysostom. The purpose of this article is to examine more closely the construction of Susanna in the homily, with specific reference to the use of masculinity, psychic typology and finally, the construction of early Christian salvation history. After addressing, in brief, some matters of canonicity, a close reading of On Susanna is given. It is demonstrated that the Cappadocian strategically constructs Susanna like a virginal Christian martyr and ascetic, with the aim of highlighting her masculine steadfastness and dominance in her contest (agōn) against the elders. A significant second move that is made in the homily is to position the masculine Susanna as a type for the soul of the individual, which should also be guarded against the onslaught of sin and the passions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Egyptian word seshen ("water lily," a cognate of the Hebrew name Susanna, written with hieroglyphs depicting a door bolt, a garden pool, and water), may have inspired the setting of the Theodotion form of Daniel 13:1–27. This may constitute a novel type of "bilingual visual paronomasia," and point to an Egyptian source of the details of Susanna's bath, absent in the earliest (Old Greek) form of the biblical text of Daniel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the performative nature of forensic dialogue as a literary device in the story of Susanna. Whilst Susanna scholars have brought significant contributions in recent years, this article contends that there has never been a special focus on the performative function of forensic dialogue in Susanna. This aspect should be explored further as it can contribute to how the story can be read, interpreted and applied in contemporary society. The article suggests that the forensic dialogue in Susanna is possibly an intentional literary strategy by the implied author and has a performative function to benefit the implied reader. This means that the implied author uses forensic dialogue to invite participation from the reader. From a speech act interpretive angle, this article attempts to prove this claim by exploring the aforementioned literary device in Susanna and demonstrating its performative nature aimed at the reader. Contribution: The article’s main contribution rests on its unique approach to investigating the performative nature of forensic dynamics in Susanna. This technique of exploring narrative texts does also advance the Susanna scholarship, in that it offers a reader yet another way of reading, interpreting and applying the story to the contemporary society.

This article investigates the performative nature of forensic dialogue as a literary device in the story of Susanna. Whilst Susanna scholars have brought significant contributions in recent years, this article contends that there has never been a special focus on the performative function of forensic dialogue in Susanna. This aspect should be explored further as it can contribute to how the story can be read, interpreted and applied in contemporary society. The article suggests that the forensic dialogue in Susanna is possibly an intentional literary strategy by the implied author and has a performative function to benefit the implied reader. This means that the implied author uses forensic dialogue to invite participation from the reader. From a speech act interpretive angle, this article attempts to prove this claim by exploring the aforementioned literary device in Susanna and demonstrating its performative nature aimed at the reader. Contribution: The article's main contribution rests on its unique approach to investigating the performative nature of forensic dynamics in Susanna. This technique of exploring narrative texts does also advance the Susanna scholarship, in that it offers a reader yet another way of reading, interpreting and applying the story to the contemporary society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of cosmetics and body adornment in order to decorate and beautify oneself is an almost universal part of the human experience. This was also true of the ancient Palestinian culture that gave rise to the Hebrew Bible and early Jewish literature. Despite this, cosmetics and their function in the narratives in which they feature is an understudied subject within the academic scholarship of biblical literature. This article discusses the use of cosmetics in biblical and Jewish-Hellenistic texts, demonstrating that cosmetics were associated with immoral behavior and illicit sexual practices. Nevertheless, in the stories of Judith and Susanna, these characters apparently receive no such censure for applying cosmetic oil. By considering the use of cosmetics akin to a speech act, able to communicate something specific about one's social or sexual status, this article provides a new access to understanding these narratives and the characterisations of their female heroines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent literary methods have opened new possibilities in reading and understanding the logic of narratives. The Greimassian approach offers such a possibility. Though Greimas’ approach is by now accepted as part of the canon of narratology, some of its components have not yet received due attention. This is the case with his ‘veridictory square’, a diagram that applies especially to texts where oppositions such as truth-falsehood, hero-villain and subject-anti-subject are prominent themes. This article aims to demonstrate that these kinds of narratives, such as Susanna, do not concern themselves with objective truth but persuasion about truth, that is, veridiction. Truth telling in those stories corresponds to manipulation, exercising a particular cognitive doing or causing to appear as true. In other words, such a manipulation of truth aims at causing people to believe. Using Greimas’ veridictory square built on opposing modalities of being (être) and seeming (paraître), the contrast between reality and appearance, this article provides insight into the games of truth in Susanna and thus offers a new inspiring way of reading these kinds of stories.

This article addresses the highly disputed distribution of roles in the story of Susanna. Susanna consists of a number of actors of whom only a few such as Susanna, the two elders, the Jewish people and Daniel are directly related to the central action of the story. With regard to roles of these actors in the story however, a question arises: ‘who is the subject of the story of Susanna?’ Most scholars question the attribution of the role of subject to Susanna.Their contention however, has not yet been sustained by convincing evidence stemming from the use of a suitable method. This study attempts to fill this gap by using the Greimassian approach to narratives, as refined by Everaert-Desmedt. The approach comprises three levels of analysis: the figurative, the narrative and the thematic. The contribution focuses only on the narrative level of analysis, particularly on the actantial model because the main role of this structure is to reveal different functions of actors called here actants. It is the contention here that following the actantial model of the Greimassian approach of analysis Susanna emerges as the subject of the aim concern of the story.

The famous baths of two biblical women, Bathsheba and Susanna, captured the lust of their respective onlookers. Despite what is not a hint of seductive intent in their stories, many interpreters have portrayed these two characters as, essentially, 'asking for it.' Feminist scholars have worked to rehabilitate Bathsheba and Susanna's reputations. Curiously, though, neither traditional scholars portraying the characters as femmes fatales nor feminist interpreters defending them have brought a third biblical bathing woman, Judith, into the discussion. This paper argues that Judith is the only one of the three to whom the biblical text actually does attribute seductive motives. Judith uses the idea that a bathing woman is an irresistible object of desire to her advantage and so arranges semipublic baths while she is in an Assyrian military camp. Using close readings of the three texts and feminist interpretive strategies, Tamber-Rosenau argues that Judith, unlike the other two bathing women, choreographs her exposure for maximum effect. Judith's baths, unlike those of Bathsheba and Susanna, are a calculated part of a larger seduction routine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is commonly held that irony features significantly in Susanna. This seemingly plausible hypothesis, however, has not yet been supported by compelling evidence resulting from a systematic analysis of Susanna. This study attempts to fill this gap by investigating the main ironic expressions, words and incidents featuring in Susanna. The approach followed consists of uncovering expressions of irony embedded in the story by paying attention to ironic use of metaphor, ironic use of wordplay, ironic use of rhetorical questions, ironic understatements (e.g. litotes), ironic exaggeration (e.g. hyperbole), ironic use of social conventions and traditions and ironic attribution. It is the contention of this study that Susanna is a thematically ironic story. The use of reversed social conventions is the most powerful and the most abundant expression of irony in the story. This dominant derisive technique is possibly aimed at addressing the irrelevance as well as the abuse of Jewish social conventions in the Second Temple period.

While Shakespeare clearly borrows from Ovid inThe Merchant of Venice, substantial correspondences between Shakespeare's play and Euripides'Medeasuggest that this Greek text may have been an equally important source for Shakespeare's Jason/Medea plotlines and invite us to reconsider the foundational assumption that Shakespeare was wholly unfamiliar with Greek drama. Several Latin and French translations of the Attic play circulated during the late sixteenth century, and structural, thematic, and topical parallels between the two dramas provide compelling evidence for a Euripidean influence on Shakespeare's work. Recognizing a Euripidean strain within the play would help to resolve many of the most pressing questions aboutThe Merchant of Veniceby providing classical evidence in support of modern readings and performances that highlight Shakespeare's sympathy for the plight of religious, sexual, and racial others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the possible gender agenda of Susanna. Gender is one of the most debated issues in the study of the story. A frequently asked question is: "does Susanna reinforce or undermine patriarchy?" Most scholars, mainly feminists, are pessimistic and suspicious about the subversive programme of Susanna. This study addresses the above concern using the Greimassian approach to narratives, as refined by Everaert-Desmedt. The approach comprises three levels of analysis: the figurative, the narrative and the thematic. Results from preliminary analysis appear to highlight "Jewishness" as the main concern here. True Jewishness seems to depend exclusively on the commitment to the Law, regardless of gender. A woman such as Susanna, committed to the Law even to the cost of her life, is a true Jew (...). Men like the elders, opposing the Law, are corrupt and corrupting strangers (...). Accordingly, Susanna undermines rather than reinforces patriarchy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the New Testament is interpreted, directly preceding literature is largely neglected. The dialectical terms, discourse and contra-discourse do not often surface in research on this period. This is especially the case with reference to women. Jesus Ben Sira (ca. 196 BCE) as well as other wisdom writers had quite a negative view of women. Although it has previously been argued that this negative discourse on women was challenged by Judith, this article goes further: the Additions to Esther and Susanna are added as possible challenging discourses. It is argued that these texts convincingly confront Ben Sira’s negative views and add substantial value to the worth and status of women. During the CE, both Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul had a mainly positive view of women. Positive ideas and allusions from texts are pointed out that might have their roots in the Apocrypha. Lastly, this article argues that the disputed Pauline letters contain a swing back towards Jesus Ben Sira’s negative view of women.

When the New Testament is interpreted, directly preceding literature is largely neglected. The dialectical terms, discourse and contra-discourse do not often surface in research on this period. This is especially the case with reference to women. Jesus Ben Sira (ca. 196 BCE) as well as other wisdom writers had quite a negative view of women. Although it has previously been argued that this negative discourse on women was challenged by Judith, this article goes further: the Additions to Esther and Susanna are added as possible challenging discourses. It is argued that these texts convincingly confront Ben Sira's negative views and add substantial value to the worth and status of women. During the CE, both Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul had a mainly positive view of women. Positive ideas and allusions from texts are pointed out that might have their roots in the Apocrypha. Lastly, this article argues that the disputed Pauline letters contain a swing back towards Jesus Ben Sira's negative view of women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a response to the dramatic changes in migratory patterns experienced in Spain in the last twenty years, Spanish cultural productions on the topic of current immigration reveal less about the real lives of the newcomers and more about Spain's anxiety regarding its own liminal location in Europe. This paper analyses how Spanish immigration films, through a narrative plot of a failed intercultural romance, become complicit with the assumptions of differentialist racism, i.e. with the fear of racial/cultural contagion and intermixing, even when striving to show positive images of immigrants. Examples are drawn from the films Las cartas de AIou (`Armendáriz, 1990), Bwana (Uribe, 1996), Said (Solen 1998), Poniente (Gutiérrez, 2002) and especially Tomándote (Gardela, 2000) and Susanna (Chavarrías, 1997)4 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]