In this groundbreaking work, Norman R. Petersen integrates contemporary literary-critical, sociological,and anthropological insights into the traditional arena of historical-critical methods. he demonstrates how these new approaches can be used to interpret biblical texts, especially Paul''s letters. The Letter to Philemon serves as a case study. Yet Petersen focuses on the narrative world of Paul as well, for one cannot be truly understood without the other. This work articulates a ""sociology of letters,"" explores the social structures which underlie the social relations of the actors in Paul''s world, and deals with the systems of belief, knowledge, and value that define the identities of these actors and motivate their actions. Here is cutting-edge scholarship.""It is superb: the recognized validity of the tools used here and there immediate relevance to the text, as well as the illumination they throw, makes this a show-piece application of literary-sociological analysis tot a bi
