Croy Flashcards
Several factors that complicate the interpretation of the Bible
Our outsider status Language gap History Cultural assumptions Differences in readers’ perspectives Differences in readers’ abilities
What is exegesis?
explanation of the text.
What is hermeneutics?
methods used to arrive at exegesis. The theory of how you determine meaning.
Where is meaning to be sought? (Three responses)
In the author’s intention
In the text itself
In the reader
Meaning as located in the author’s intention
This is the traditional view - the text means what the author intended it to mean
Meaning as located in the text
meaning is to be found in the work itself, by a careful analysis of its language, syntax, structure, style, etc.
Reader-response theory
moderate view
ascribes roles to both text and reader in the production of meaning. Acknowledges the importance of controls or limits on interpretation.
Reader-response theory
extreme view
confuses reading with writing. “If you want to construe another’s meaning, then read”
According to Croy, where is meaning to be found?
Ultimately the ground of textual meaning is authorial intention as expressed in the author’s communicative activity, not the author’s consciousness
What is determinate meaning?
A determinate meaning is one that has defined limits, not necessarily so precisely defined as to be singular and exclusive of all other meanings, but defined within a finite range - it is not infinitely elastic.
Tetherball metaphor of meaning
Just as severing a tetherball from its pole would fundamentally alter the game, severing meaning from the author by disregarding authorial intent and its textual expression takes one away from interpreting text
