Throughout the entire book of Genesis, a sense of suspense is prevalent. The type of suspense created isn’t necessarily the type that creates an aura of impending doom, but the type that is geared towards a reader who analyzes the Bible academically instead of spiritually. This reader actively finds and appreciates the literary devices used in the book of Genesis; specifically the literary device of suspense. In addition, this reader recognizes that the repetitious deceit by the characters causes suspense. They also understand that many of the narratives in Genesis are driven forward by deceitful actions. This being said, it needs to be understood that the deceptions in Genesis can be organized into different subgroups: traps, tests, and lies.
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According to Dictionary.com, suspense is “a state or condition of mental uncertainty or excitement, as in awaiting a decision or outcome”. This definition certainly helps gain understanding, but it also important to look at suspense from a literary standpoint. Just like there are subgroups of deceit, there are different literary aspects to suspense. One aspect of suspense that will be analyzed further due to its nature in the story of Joseph is dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is when the audience knows something that the characters in the story do not know. This form of irony plays a major role in creating suspense in the Joseph …show more content…
The first subgroup of deceit is a “trap”. This form of deceit has one purpose, to trick another character or group of characters into doing something that they wouldn’t do if they knew the planned outcome of the deceiver(s). An example of this is when Laban tricks Jacob into marrying Leah instead of Rachel, then making Jacob serve another seven years to be married to Rachel. Laban knew that Jacob would not marry Leah purposefully, so using Rachel as an incentive was a trap. The second subgroup of deceit is a “test”. This form of deceit isn’t necessarily used to hurt or trick the “tested” character, but put them in a situation and see how they respond to it. An example of this is when God created the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but tells man, “... of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die” (Genesis 2:17). Man didn’t know right from wrong, so he ate from the tree, and failed God’s “test”. The final subgroup of deceit is “lying”. This subgroup seems obvious, but it is still important to include. This type of deceit is when one character lies another character for their own benefit. An example of this is when Jacob deceives his father and steals his brother’s blessing. When it comes to the three subgroups of deceit, it is important to understand that while they each have their own
According to Dictionary.com, suspense is “a state or condition of mental uncertainty or excitement, as in awaiting a decision or outcome”. This definition certainly helps gain understanding, but it also important to look at suspense from a literary standpoint. Just like there are subgroups of deceit, there are different literary aspects to suspense. One aspect of suspense that will be analyzed further due to its nature in the story of Joseph is dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is when the audience knows something that the characters in the story do not know. This form of irony plays a major role in creating suspense in the Joseph …show more content…
The first subgroup of deceit is a “trap”. This form of deceit has one purpose, to trick another character or group of characters into doing something that they wouldn’t do if they knew the planned outcome of the deceiver(s). An example of this is when Laban tricks Jacob into marrying Leah instead of Rachel, then making Jacob serve another seven years to be married to Rachel. Laban knew that Jacob would not marry Leah purposefully, so using Rachel as an incentive was a trap. The second subgroup of deceit is a “test”. This form of deceit isn’t necessarily used to hurt or trick the “tested” character, but put them in a situation and see how they respond to it. An example of this is when God created the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but tells man, “... of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die” (Genesis 2:17). Man didn’t know right from wrong, so he ate from the tree, and failed God’s “test”. The final subgroup of deceit is “lying”. This subgroup seems obvious, but it is still important to include. This type of deceit is when one character lies another character for their own benefit. An example of this is when Jacob deceives his father and steals his brother’s blessing. When it comes to the three subgroups of deceit, it is important to understand that while they each have their own