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REVIEWS G. R. DRIVER, Canaanite Myths and Legends. Old Testament

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REVIEWS G. R. DRIVER, Canaanite Myths and Legends. Old Testament REVIEWS G. R. DRIVER, Canaanite myths and legends. Old Testament Studies No 3, Edinburgh, Clark, 1956, 168 pp. Le tell de Ras Shamra continue a donner des textes, et parfois meme des textes mythologiques. Mais, depuis longtemps, on n'a pas retrouve 1'equivalent des grands textes qui ont renouvel6 nos connaissances de la religion et de la mythologie des Semites de l'Ouest au IIeme millenaire avant J. C. C. GORDONnous avait donn6, d'une part un Manuel, avec les textes, la grammaire et le lexique, d'autre part un petit volume moins on6reux contenant la traduction des principaux textes avec une intro- duction et des notes tres succinctes. G. R. DRIVER vient de r6a]iser un tour de force en permettant aux biblistes et semitisants d'avoir sous un format pratique et en moins de 200 pages les avantages des deux precedents volumes. Les travaux de GORDONrestent indispensables et inappreciables; ils sont concus en fonction de la litterature ugaritique elle-meme. L'ouvrage de DRIVER laisse de c6te un certain nombre de textes (listes, lettres ...) qui n'ont qu'une utilite indirecte pour 1'6tude de 1'Ancien Testament. Mais il donne a la fois Je texte ugaritique en transcription, la traduction propos6e (en regard), les notes de critique textuelle (sous la page dr texte ugaritique), les notes explicatives (sous la page de traduction anglaise). Une preface de 25 pages donne les references bibliographiques indis- pensables (publications contenant les textes originaux, traductions, princi- pales monographies), quelques precisions sur les decouvertes, et le resume du contenu des tablettes. La conclusion comprend 5 pages de philologie et grammaire, 2 pages de references bibliques, et surtout un glossaire indiquant toutes les references du mot dans les textes 6tudi6s, avec l'indication de la valeur du terme dans une autre langue s6mitique qui justifie le sens propose. Avec beaucoup d'objectivite G. R. DRIVER indique l'auteur qui, le premier, a propose le sens qu'il adopte. Linguiste eminent, il n'a suivi ni 1'ordre des lettres habituel a 1'hebreu, ni l'ordre alphabetique europeen, ni 1'ordre des ab6c6daires d'Ugarit, mais l'ordre phonetique. 11 faut reconnaitre que ce souci scientifique, s'il t6moigne du souci et de la competence philologiques de l'auteur, complique un peu le travail du lecteur qui n'est pas habitu6 ? separer le m du n, qui trouvera la p joint au b parmi les dernieres lettres, tout pres du y, et qui se perd un peu dans les sifHantes. Nous verrons si l'ordre propose par l'auteur finit par s'imposer. En tous cas on a la un instrument de travail inappr6ciable. Un ouvrage comme celui-la va de plus beaucoup contribuer a vaincre les dernieres r6sistances ? l'utilisation des textes ugaritiques dans 1'exegese de 1'Ancien Testament. Malgre les divergences de detail qui subsistent sur telle ou telle phrase, telle ou telle signification, iJ ressort de ce travail et de sa comparaison avec les traductions de GORDON, GINSBERG, Mlle 421 HERDNER, CASSUTO,GASTER, sans oublier C. VIROLLEAUD,1'6diteur des textes (qui n'a pas donn6 de nouvelles traductions, mais a resume ces textes dans ses Légendes de Canaan et de Babylone) un accord essentiel sur les lignes essentielles de ces r6cits. Apres le present ouvrage on sera impar- donnable de ne pas les utiliser. Les sept "legendes" que retient G. R. DRIVER sont Keret, Aqhat, les Rephaim, Hadad, Baal (dont il detache donc Hadad), Shachar et Shalim (les dieux gracieux), Nikkal et les Kosharot. On retrouve plus facilement avec lui qu'avec GORDON la designation premiere des tablettes, celle a laquelle malgr6 tout on est habitue. 11 est en effet regrettable que GORDON, a cote du num6ro qu'il propose, ne donne pas entre parenthese le sigle de 1'editio princeps. Le premier texte est donc K6ret, dans 1'ordre des 3 tablettes maintenant universellement reconnu, en particulier depuis la publication GINSBERG; Keret I, Keret III, Keret II. Cette legende comporte peut-etre "un certain noyau de faits historiques", mais la question trait6e est celle de savoir "comment un roi sans palais, sans femme et sans heritier peut etre vraiment un roi". L'auteur dont la bibliographie s'arrete a 1954 n'a pu discuter la these de J. GRAY (The Krt Text in the Literature of Ras Shamra) pour lequel le texte est un mythe social ? caractère religieux (plutot saga que mythe) tendant a legitimer une dynastie nee de l'union du roi avec une princesse hurrite, et justifiant ainsi 1'existence d'une societe racialement composite comme celle d'Ugarit. 11 me semble en effet que le probleme de Keret est plutot celui de la succession a la royaute que celui de la royaute meme dont les organes ne sont pas en discussion. 11 est tres peu question du palais dans Keret (a la diff6rence du Temple dans Baal) et le roi ne reste pas sans femme. Les premi?res lignes, mutilees, restent tres difhciles. Puis tout le monde est d'accord pour voir une description de 1'6tat lamentable de Keret et de sa maison. Contre GINSBERG (et GRAY), mais avec GORDON, G.R.D. traduit att. ¡dqh. lypq dans le sens que la femme de K6ret est partie. Notons déj à ici qu'il est douteux que jdq et ysr signifient proprement "legitime". On sait que sdq ne sont pas par eux-memes juridiques, mais evoquent une bonne marche des affaires. C'est la femme qui va assurer l'avenir du royaume par ses rapports avec le roi. Non seulement ces rapport lui donnent une descendance mais ils assurent de plus, par magie ou symbole, la fecondite du pays. G.R.D. voit dans les noms de nombre des fractions descendantes exprimant dans une sorte de mashal numerique la diminution de la prog6niture de Keret. Je resterais volontiers fidele a CASSUTO(BESOR 119, 18s); il y aurait une succession de sept femmes qui meurent comme il y a une succession de sept personnages dans la Iere colonne de Ludlul bel nemeqi publi6c par VON SODENen 1953 (Bi. Or. X, loss); d'autant que le phyr de K6ret semble correspondre au pahru de A VO 12,y(rb au errub de la 1. 16. Malheureusement la l?re tablette de Ludlul bel nemeki reste mutilée, et la tablette de WILLIAMS(JCS, VI, 5-7) n'apporte rien sur ce point. A la 1. 30 la lecture de G.R.D. tmh est soutenue par la copie, mais la lecture km ... de J. GRAY a ete reconnue par C. VIROLLEAUDet A. HERDNER; elle est sure. En ii 4s, G.R.D. garde la restitution importante de GINSBERG: .
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