How old is prejudice against black people? Were the racist attitudes that fueled the Atlantic slave trade firmly in place 700 years before the European discovery of sub-Saharan Africa? In this groundbreaking book; David Goldenberg seeks to discover how dark-skinned peoples; especially black Africans; were portrayed in the Bible and by those who interpreted the Bible--Jews; Christians; and Muslims. Unprecedented in rigor and breadth; his investigation covers a 1;500-year period; from ancient Israel (around 800 B.C.E.) to the eighth century C.E.; after the birth of Islam. By tracing the development of anti-Black sentiment during this time; Goldenberg uncovers views about race; color; and slavery that took shape over the centuries--most centrally; the belief that the biblical Ham and his descendants; the black Africans; had been cursed by God with eternal slavery. Goldenberg begins by examining a host of references to black Africans in biblical and postbiblical Jewish literature. From there he moves the inquiry from Black as an ethnic group to black as color; and early Jewish attitudes toward dark skin color. He goes on to ask when the black African first became identified as slave in the Near East; and; in a powerful culmination; discusses the resounding influence of this identification on Jewish; Christian; and Islamic thinking; noting each tradition's exegetical treatment of pertinent biblical passages. Authoritative; fluidly written; and situated at a richly illuminating nexus of images; attitudes; and history; The Curse of Ham is sure to have a profound and lasting impact on the perennial debate over the roots of racism and slavery; and on the study of early Judaism; Christianity; and Islam.
#5031674 in Books Princeton Univ. Press 1986-01-21Ingredients: Example IngredientsPDF # 1 1.81 #File Name: 0691054576463 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy dheepa sundaramfantastic read on South Indian myth and poetry!
