University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Department of Near Eastern Languages and Departmental Papers (NELC) Civilizations (NELC) 1988 Review of Eli Yassif, Jewish Folklore: An Annotated Bibliography Dan Ben-Amos University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://repository.upenn.edu/nelc_papers Part of the Cultural History Commons, Folklore Commons, Jewish Studies Commons, and the Near and Middle Eastern Studies Commons Recommended Citation Ben-Amos, D. (1988). Review of Eli Yassif, Jewish Folklore: An Annotated Bibliography. The Journal of American Folklore, 101 (399), 106-108. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/540274 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/nelc_papers/82 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Review of Eli Yassif, Jewish Folklore: An Annotated Bibliography Abstract A thematic bibliography has the dual function of research summation and discipline boundary-demarcation. When a discipline is still forming, and its patterns are still pliable, a bibliography could have a stabilizing effect, laying the foundation for future scholarship. The dmitta ance of entries from a variety of relevant fields into the bibliography establishes them as the scholarly canon, and they become the core around which subsequent research clusters. This function is apparent in particular in this bibliography of Jewish folklore. Disciplines Cultural History | Folklore | Jewish Studies | Near and Middle Eastern Studies This review is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/nelc_papers/82 106 Journal ofAmerican Folklore (101, 1988) ductionduction to tothe thesubject. subject. Mieder Miederhas made hasit available made againit available with a fine again reprint, with not a offine the originalreprint, not of the original 19311931 edition, edition, but butof the of 1962 the reprint 1962 thatreprint includes that a new includes foreword a bynew Taylor foreword and An Index by Taylorto and An Index to "The"The Proverb," Proverb," which which had originally had originally been published been separately. published For separately.this edition Mieder For thishas writ- edition Mieder has writ- tenten an an introduction introduction tracing tracing Taylor's Taylor'slife and work life as anda paremiologist, work as a together paremiologist, with the bibli- together with the bibli- ographyography of ofTaylor's Taylor's proverb proverb studies publishedstudies earlierpublished in Mieder's earlier edition in Mieder'sof Selected editionWritings ofon Selected Writings on ProverbsProverbs by byArcher Archer Taylor Taylor (Helsinki, (Helsinki, 1975). The following1975). The items, following though occasionally items, though trivial, occasionally trivial, mightmight have have been been included: included: "Out of "Outthe Horse's of the Mouth," Horse's American Mouth," Notes American& Queries, 7 (1948),Notes 158; & Queries, 7 (1948), 158; "One"One for for the the Cutworm," Cutworm," Western Western Folklore, 17Folklore, (1958), 52-53; 17 (1958),"Spick and 52-53; Span," "SpickWestern andFolklore, Span," Western Folklore, 2323 (1964), (1964), 267-268; 267-268; "Raw "RawHead and Head Bloody and Bones," Bloody Journal Bones," of American Journal Folklore, of American 77 (1964), 81; Folklore, 77 (1964), 81; reviewsreviews of ofA. H.A. Holt, H. Holt,Phrase PhraseOrigins (ModernOrigins Philology, (Modern 35 Philology,(1937), 109-110); 35 W. (1937), C. Korfmacher, 109-110); W. C. Korfmacher, OthloniOthloni libellusproverbiorum libellusproverbiorum (Modern (ModernPhilology, 36Philology, (1938), 102); 36 and (1938), Edmund 102); I. Gordon, and SumerianEdmund I. Gordon, Sumerian ProverbsProverbs (Journal (Journal of American of American Folklore, Folklore,73 (1960), 351-352). 73 (1960), In his 351-352). introduction In Mieder his introduction speaks Mieder speaks highlyhighly of ofTaylor's Taylor's role as role an inspirer as an inspirerof continuing of researchcontinuing in proverbs. research Indeed, in notproverbs. only was Indeed, not only was hehe capable capable of instigatingof instigating initial research,initial research,but as an indefatigable but as an letter indefatigable writer, he constantly letter writer, prod- he constantly prod- dedded his his friends friends and colleaguesand colleagues into increased into endeavor,increased generously endeavor, sending generously photocopies sending of ob- photocopies of ob- scurescure materials materials pertinent pertinent to their to interests, their interests,all the while allkeeping the constantlywhile keeping aware of constantly the work aware of the work beingbeing done done in proverbin proverb studies studiesaround the around world. Itthe is altogetherworld. It fitting is altogether and proper fittingthat Mieder and proper that Mieder shouldshould be beled ledto produce to produce this new this edition new of editionThe Proverb, of Thesince Proverb,it is obvious since that Taylor'sit is obvious pare- that Taylor's pare- miologicalmiological mantle mantle has fallen has tofallen him. to him. JewishJewish Folklore: Folklore: An Annotated An Annotated Bibliography. Bibliography. By Eli Yassif. By(New Eli York: Yassif. Garland (New Publish- York: Garland Publish- ing,ing, 1986. 1986. Pp. Pp.xxi +xxi 341, + introduction, 341, introduction, index. $65.00) index. $65.00) DAN BEN-AMOS University of Pennsylvania A thematic bibliography has the dual function of research summation and discipline boundary- demarcation. When a discipline is still forming, and its patterns are still pliable, a bibliography could have a stabilizing effect, laying the foundation for future scholarship. The admittance of entries from a variety of relevant fields into the bibliography establishes them as the scholarly canon, and they become the core around which subsequent research clusters. This function is apparent in particular in this bibliography ofJewish folklore. Jewish traditional thought, and consequently its study, shares concepts and terms with the discipline of folklore. Oral tradition and oral transmission, which have been the fundamental prin- ciples upon which folklore has developed as a scholarly discipline, have also been the terms with which Jewish traditional thought defines its own postbiblical law, lore, and literature, contrast- ing them as a binary set with the written tradition, a term reserved for the Old Testament. Con- sequently, in Jewish Studies much of the research overlaps with the discipline of folklore and theoretically could have been legitimately included in this bibliography. This would have meant that many studies of the Talmud and practically all the research on midrashic literature should have appeared in the present volume. In addition, three other research areas in the history of Jewish cultures and literatures could have been rightfully encompassed by folklore: (1) the study of the apocryphal books that offer early literary formulations of some standard tale types, such as 505-508 "The Grateful Dead" and 934 B "The Hero Predestined to Die on His Wedding Day" in The Book of Tobit, or 2031 "Stronger and Strongest" in the apocryphal First Esdras; (2) the research into medieval Jewish narrative tradition, which includes many more written renditions of internationally diffused tales; and (3) the scholarship on Jewish mysticism (including demonology) that deals with a phe- This content downloaded from 165.123.108.206 on Fri, 01 Sep 2017 20:11:38 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms Book Reviews 107 nomenon that became apparent in late antiquity and flourished in the Middle Ages. Such a bib- liography would have had proportions of alarming enormity. In order to avoid the problems inherent in overly large bibliographies, Eli Yassif has chosen wisely to use method rather than subject as the criterion for inclusion of entries in the bibliog- raphy; or, in his words, "It is a bibliography offolkloristics and not folklore." In his work, he has not even attempted to include all the accumulated multidiscipline scholarship that is relevant to Jewish folklore, but has concentrated only upon those studies that either attempt, or claim to be accountable to, folklore methods, theories, and concepts. The distinction between subject and method in the study ofJewish folklore can well be dem- onstrated by the entry Yassif selects to represent the inception of Jewish folklore studies. While the earliest analytical study in Jewish folklore is by Leopold Zunz, Die Gottesdienstlichen Vortrage derjuden: Historisch Entwicklet (1832), Yassif postpones the beginning of Jewish folklore schol- arship by four decades to Mortiz Steinschneider, "Uber die Volksliteratur derJuden," (1872), [no. 1142 in the bibliography]. Zunz's work antedates the term folklore, but not Volkskunde, and is often regarded as the starting point ofJewish studies in general. It is a historical survey, tracing the development of religious sermons in the synagogues from their earliest known period to the 18th and 19th centuries in Germany. With chapters dealing with such topics as "the Haggadah," "the ethical Haggadah," and "the historical Haggadah," offering a literary historical and biblio- graphical examination of Jewish legends, this book could have served as the starting point of Jewish folklore studies as well. However, Zunz does not employ folklore concepts; he perceives himself accountable to Jewish religious history. In contrast, Steinschneider, whose figure dom- inates the second half of the 19th century in Jewish studies,