The Jewish War: First half of Book 4

[cahn]

Last week: Josephus really hypes Vespasian up! Galilee is also very nice! Discussion of Josephus' prophecy of Vespasian, both in Josephus and in Feuchtwanger's novelization, with detours into Antonia and Caenis.

This week: Internal strife in Jerusalem! Lots of internal strife!

Next week: Last half of book 4.

Comments

[cahn]

...icons! And thus was iconoclasm born.

Hee, I did know about the icons! Long ago I read an abridged version of John Julius Norwich -- actually because The Dragon Waiting piqued my interested in Byzantium. Perhaps I should go back and read it again because I've forgotten almost all of it. I know it's not the most accurate thing out there but I remember it being quite entertaining.

So far, I get the impression it's God's will because all the internal strife. (I.e. in our narrator's mind, that is.)

I'm pretty sure it's this -- he brought it up in the prologue, after all, as the reason why all this happened, and lannamichaels also said that. I think (?) that the God-being-unfathomable-cited-as-a-reason may be more of a Christian concept?

you can go back to book 2 of the trilogy which has a scene where John of Gischala gives Joseph his personal review of The Jewish War as a book. :)

Ahhhhh I will have to reread that again!