The Complexity of Conversion - Intersectional Perspectives on Religious Change in Antiquity and Beyond - Valérie Nicolet
Conversion in/to the Wilderness: The Case of the Egyptian Slave Girl Hagar in Early Christian and Jewish Texts
The Complexity of Conversion - Intersectional Perspectives on Religious Change in Antiquity and Beyond - Valérie Nicolet
Marianne Bjelland Kartzow [+]
University of Oslo
Description
In this article, intersectionality is employed to map and compare Jewish and Christian texts that talk about Ishmael’s mother Hagar and her ambiguous role as an insider/outsider. Her insider/outsider position or conversion cannot be understood without looking at intersections of gender, sexuality, class, and ethnicity. She is a foreign slave, a potential female seducer, but her character is not completely limited through these marginal descriptions. Her role as the mother of Abraham’s firstborn son potentially gives her a privileged position, although she is often devaluated with the help of gender, sexuality, status, or ethnic origin.