Answering a question at my paper presentation
Author: Joshua Jacobs | Major: Classical Studies | Semester: Fall 2022
My paper investigated the ideologies of death and the afterlife in Genesis 38. Specifically, I was interested in Judah’s threat to burn Tamar alive and how such an event would have destroyed the possibility of a peaceful afterlife for Tamar.
From November 17 to November 22, I was in Denver, CO for the Society of Biblical Literature’s Annual Meeting. This meeting is the premier gathering of scholars of the Bible from around the globe, and it functions both to allow new research to be presented and to promote a sense of community in the field. I went to this conference to present a paper I wrote on the near immolation of Tamar in Genesis 38, considering this narrative in light of Mesopotamian texts that mention immolation. Fortunately, my paper was well-received, and the feedback I got on it was overwhelmingly positive. Other scholars who attended the session where I presented my paper expressed interest in my ideas and a general agreement with the evidence I provided to support them. In that sense, I feel more at ease now, seeing that my research journey was met with such support. One interesting experience that I am still thinking through was the Q & A section after my presentation. While most of the questions I was asked were fairly straightforward, one question stumped me, not because I did not have the information to answer it, but because I didn’t quite understand the perspective of the questioner. I did not anticipate this, and I am still wondering how I might prepare for and respond to questions that seem to be operating under a different framework from the one I am assuming.
Aside from the presentation itself, I had the opportunity to meet several professors and graduate students in the field. I met Dr. Daniel Fleming, who is the head of the Hebrew and Judaic Studies department at New York University; we had previously been in contact through email, and he is advocating for me to receive funding for NYU’s graduate program. Meeting him was very important, as there is a chance he becomes an academic advisor as I step into further study of the ancient Near East. Similarly, I met Dr. Gina Konstantopoulos, an Assyriologist at the University of California at Los Angeles, whose program I am also applying to. Aside from these meetings with faculty members at some of my prospective graduate schools, I was also able to meet Dr. Kerry Sonia. Dr. Sonia has written a book on the ancient Israelite cult of dead kin, which my research fits under. I was able to ask her questions about her book and gain further insight into the current scholarly consensus on this phenomenon. Moreover, I met with Dr. Bruce Wells at the University of Texas, Austin, Dr. Laura Lieber at Duke University, and Dr. JoAnn Scurlock at Elmhurst College. Dr. Wells suggested after hearing my paper that I apply to his program in Hebrew Bible, of which he is the head. Dr. Lieber offered support and a contact if ever I was lost. Dr. Scurlock gave me an overview of a wide range of topics regarding the ancient Near East. I was also able to meet graduate students affiliated with NYU and the University of Pennsylvania, which provided perspective on the experience of working at the graduate level in this field.
Overall, this experience was incredibly positive, and I highly recommend other students to take the risk to put their work out there at this early stage in their scholarly career. Of course, it can be quite intimidating to walk into a room of people who are highly intelligent and highly trained. However, many of these people are kind and genuinely interested in many of the same things you are. Over the next several weeks, I will be finishing applications to master’s and doctoral programs across the United States in the Ancient Near East. In the spring, I will be finishing my thesis, furthering my research on the cult of dead kin in ancient Israel. And, hopefully, I will be off to graduate school by next fall.