Introduction to the Old Testament

Robert Alter

1987

Any literary account of the Hebrew Bible must recognize [its] quality of extreme heterogeneity. […] From one point of view, it is not even a unified collection but rather a loose anthology that reflects as much as nine centuries of Hebrew literary activity, from the Song of Deborah and other, briefer archaic poems embedded in the prose narratives…

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Creator Bio

Robert Alter

b. 1935

Robert Alter, born in New York City and brought up in Albany, is a biblical scholar and professor of Hebrew and comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley. As a longtime contributing editor at Commentary magazine, he brought Israeli literature and culture to the attention of the American reader. A literary critic and translator, he is the author of numerous monographs and is the recipient of the National Jewish Book Award and the Koret Jewish Book Award.

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