History and Memory in the Dead Sea Scrolls
Remembering the Teacher of Righteousness

Charts a new methodological course in Dead Sea Scrolls scholarship by employing memory theory to inform historical research.

Travis B. Williams (Author)

9781108493338, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 May 2019

458 pages
23.5 x 15.7 x 3 cm, 0.79 kg

The nature and reliability of the ancient sources are among the most important issues in the scholarship on the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is noteworthy, therefore, that scholars have grown increasingly skeptical about the value of these materials for reconstructing the life of the Teacher of Righteousness. Travis B. Williams' study is designed to address this new perspective and its implications for historical inquiry. He offers an important corrective to popular conceptions of history and memory by introducing memory theory as a means of informing historical investigation. Charting a new methodological course in Dead Sea Scrolls research, Williams reveals that properly representing the past requires an explanation of how the mnemonic evidence found in the relevant sources could have developed from a historical progression that began with the Teacher. His book represents the first attempt in Dead Sea Scrolls scholarship to integrate history and memory in a comprehensive way.

1. Introduction
Part I. Methodological Considerations: 2. A theoretical approach toward history
3. A mnemonic approach toward history
Part II. The Circumstances of Memory: 4. Dating the teacher and the sources
5. The availability of memory carriers
6. Memory and the impact of sources materials
7. The teacher of righteousness in ancient media
Part III. The Processes of Memory: 8. The cognitive origins of memory: scripturalizing the life of the teacher
9. From cognitive perceptions to community traditions: the formation of collective memory
10. Tracing the development of memory: the transmission of the teacher tradition
11. Evaluating the potential for change: the malleability and persistence of the teacher tradition
Appendix 1: the historical value of attributed authorship
Appendix 2: the life of the teacher as an interpretive frame
Appendix 3: the instructions of the teacher.

Subject Areas: Judaism [HRJ], History of religion [HRAX], Religion & beliefs [HR], History: specific events & topics [HBT], Regional & national history [HBJ], History [HB], Humanities [H]