Was the Woman with the Flow of Blood Drunk?: An Exploration of the Possibility that She Was Viewed as an Anus Ebria
This article offers a new reading of the story of the woman with the flow of blood in Mk 5:25–34 that focuses on the intersection of gender and social status. Moving away from gynaecological analysis, I use the representation of the anus ebria (drunken old woman) figure in Greco-Roman literature, dr...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Sage
2023
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In: |
Journal for the study of the New Testament
Year: 2023, Volume: 46, Issue: 2, Pages: 150-167 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Mark
/ Gender
|
RelBib Classification: | HC New Testament ZB Sociology |
Further subjects: | B
the woman with the flow of blood
B anus ebria B contextual reading B Anus ebria B Social History B Gender B New Testament |
Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
Summary: | This article offers a new reading of the story of the woman with the flow of blood in Mk 5:25–34 that focuses on the intersection of gender and social status. Moving away from gynaecological analysis, I use the representation of the anus ebria (drunken old woman) figure in Greco-Roman literature, drama, and art to explore how ancient readers might have responded to her conduct. Using this material, I argue that many readers would have understood the woman’s behaviour as conforming to this ancient type. The distinction is important, I contend, because, unlike widows, the anus ebria was an unsympathetic figure in ancient drama. This more intersectional reading of the woman’s social status, in turn, sharpens our reading of the revolutionary character of Jesus’s ministry in Mark. |
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ISSN: | 1745-5294 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal for the study of the New Testament
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/0142064X231191945 |