A history of the Talmud / David C. Kraemer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kraemer, David Charles, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Talmud--History.

Talmud.

History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xiv, 291 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Summary:

"It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of the Talmud in Judaism and beyond. Yet its difficult language and its assumptions, so distant from modern sensibilities, render it inaccessible to most readers. In this volume, David Kraemer offers students of Judaism a sophisticated and accessible introduction to one of the religion's most important texts. Here, he brings together his expertise as a scholar of the Talmud and rabbinic Judaism with the lessons of his experience as director of one of the largest collections of rare Judaica in the world. Tracing the Talmud's origins and its often controversial status through history, he bases his work on the most recent historical and literary scholarship while making no assumptions concerning the reader's prior knowledge. Kraemer also examines the continuities and shifts of the Talmud over time and space. His work will provide scholars and students with an unprecedented understanding of one of the world's great classics and the spirit that animates it"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction: Why a history of the Talmud?

Before the rabbis

The emergence of the Mishnah

What is the Mishnah?

The reception of the Mishnah

The first Talmud: the Yerushalmi

Jews in Babylonia and the emergence of the Babylonian Talmud (the Bavli)

What is the Bavli?

The reception of the Bavli

The Talmud in early modernity

The Talmud in modernity and beyond.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781108481366

1108481361

OCLC:

1089858436