Withstanding the Goading of Temptation or Not? An Inter-textual Study of Pride and Envy in Genesis Chapter 3:1-19 and Shakespeare's Othello: Implications for Interdisciplinary Co-operation in Catholic Education
Abstract
The tendencies towards pride and envy continue to be key constituents of personal, political and social life, with inevitable harmful consequences. This paper is an inter-textual examination of Genesis 3:1-19 and Shakespeare's Othello. My central question is how might the Biblical Word inform readings and performances of the tragedy and vice versa, and what does this method tell us about the two vices concerned? A secondary, more general question, is how do such investigations highlight who we are as human beings? It thus touches on one of the most important aspects of Catholic education - theological anthropology. I was motivated by the urgent need for interdisciplinary study in Catholic education, especially the possibility of creative and fruitful discussion between religion and literature and how teachers might collaborate across these disciplines. Genesis 3 crops up in all stages of learning in the Catholic secondary school and is a particular topic on the GCSE Religious Studies syllabus. Othello is an 'A' level text, with thousands of students in England, Wales and Norther Ireland studying it every year. The main points of the discussion are: clarification of the subtle and devastating nature of pride and envy; the leanings towards such tendencies during post(modernity) when belief in God is dissipating in the West; how the Church Fathers, by their astute exegesis of this Biblical passage, offer a healing process, still relevant today. Signs of grace include the need for collaboration in this field between teachers of religious studies, teachers/tutors of literature and other professionals interested in this issue; an open-ended, listening and discernment approach to see where such hermeneutical investigation into two important texts might lead us; a prayerful foundation to the entire project.
Withstanding the Goading of Temptation or Not? An Inter-textual Study of Pride and Envy in Genesis Chapter 3:1-19 and Shakespeare's Othello: Implications for Interdisciplinary Co-operation in Catholic Education
The tendencies towards pride and envy continue to be key constituents of personal, political and social life, with inevitable harmful consequences. This paper is an inter-textual examination of Genesis 3:1-19 and Shakespeare's Othello. My central question is how might the Biblical Word inform readings and performances of the tragedy and vice versa, and what does this method tell us about the two vices concerned? A secondary, more general question, is how do such investigations highlight who we are as human beings? It thus touches on one of the most important aspects of Catholic education - theological anthropology. I was motivated by the urgent need for interdisciplinary study in Catholic education, especially the possibility of creative and fruitful discussion between religion and literature and how teachers might collaborate across these disciplines. Genesis 3 crops up in all stages of learning in the Catholic secondary school and is a particular topic on the GCSE Religious Studies syllabus. Othello is an 'A' level text, with thousands of students in England, Wales and Norther Ireland studying it every year. The main points of the discussion are: clarification of the subtle and devastating nature of pride and envy; the leanings towards such tendencies during post(modernity) when belief in God is dissipating in the West; how the Church Fathers, by their astute exegesis of this Biblical passage, offer a healing process, still relevant today. Signs of grace include the need for collaboration in this field between teachers of religious studies, teachers/tutors of literature and other professionals interested in this issue; an open-ended, listening and discernment approach to see where such hermeneutical investigation into two important texts might lead us; a prayerful foundation to the entire project.