One might (erroneously) have assumed that previous scholarship had thoroughly investigated the impact of Greco-Roman culture on rabbinic literature. But, as Richard Hidary writes in his Rabbis and Classical Rhetoric: Sophistic Education and Oratory in the Talmud and Midrash, “while rhetorical criticism has been generously and fruitfully applied to the New Testament … rabbinic literature has received relatively little attention in this regard” (18). Indeed, Hidary's masterful study of the impact of Sophistic rhetoric on the rabbis charts new territory for understanding rabbinic literature in its Greco-Roman context and propels the field forward to engage with more nuanced questions.
Hidary sets the stage for his argument by describing the reach of the Second Sophistic in the ancient world and the structure of rhetorical argumentation as depicted in various Greco-Roman handbooks. Guided by a basic project of demonstrating the rabbinic use of Sophistic rhetorical structures and techniques, Hidary's literary readings often reveal important cultural and epistemological insights. The first chapter maps out how some of the basic forms of rabbinic derashot, such as the proem, the later yelamdenu form, and even the Mishnah's outline for the Passover seder, align with structural elements of Greek oration, including narration, exordium, and partition. The subsequent two chapters move to the Yerushalmi and the Bavli, and reinforce the initial claim of the pervasive impact of the Sophistic rhetorical tradition. A more precise comparison appears in chapter 4, in which Hidary correlates tannaitic midrashim and the Bavli with the progymnasmata (Greek primers) and controversiae (more elaborate declamations). With chapter 5 Hidary begins to shift his trajectory by discussing rabbinic hermeneutical principles against the backdrop of Greek rhetoric and then evaluating how the rabbis recognized the limitations of some of these devices. This transition paves the way for chapters 6 and 7, which focus on the role of legal actors in earthly and divine courtrooms. Hidary identifies two major judicial approaches: adversarial, which involves advocates and a somewhat passive judge, and inquisitorial, which revolves around the decision of the presiding judicial authority. Aligning these two models with the epistemological subjectivity of the rhetorical tradition and the quest for objective truth in the philosophical tradition, Hidary depicts the rabbis as navigating a medial position that allows for some advocacy in terrestrial courts but centralizes decision making in the hands of judges who are sufficiently knowledgeable to discern the truth. When it comes to the heavenly court, however, rhetorical techniques become a necessary path for avoiding truth when it would result in overly strict justice. Summarizing his literary and philosophical arguments, in the conclusion to this work Hidary compares rabbinic usage of classical rhetoric to the ways in which early Christianity engaged with this tradition.
Rabbis and Classical Rhetoric advances the field on two interconnected fronts. First, Hidary proffers a sustained argument for reading all of rabbinic literature through the lens of rhetoric, reframing rabbinic hermeneutics as a fusion of midrashic exegesis and rhetorical style. This dual lens sharpens the contours of rabbinic participation in ambient trends of literary production and highlights the unusual application of rhetorical modes of argumentation to scriptural interpretation. Secondly, building on his previous work on talmudic legal pluralism, in the present work Hidary provides a creative and sophisticated approach to mapping the rabbinic pursuit of truth onto Greek jurisprudential models. By identifying the ways through which idealized rabbinic court procedure operates both within adversarial and inquisitorial modes, while drawing a distinction between the terrestrial and celestial pursuits of truth, Hidary charts new territory for understanding how the rabbis conceptualized the intersection between law and truth. Hidary's grasp of Sophistic rhetorical traditions and the breadth of other parallels brought to bear in his analysis contribute to a well-rounded presentation of the evidence and a lucid thesis. Written in an eloquent style and offering concrete and accessible examples, Rabbis and Classical Rhetoric is a welcome addition for both scholars of rabbinic literature and nonexperts alike.
Hidary's compelling arguments open the door for future research into the genre(s) of rabbinic literature and into potential shifts in rabbinic attitudes toward the production and transmission of Jewish traditions. His analysis also leaves a few specific issues open for further investigation. For example, some readers might have appreciated a bit more attention to diachronic developments in the ways that the rabbis navigate the tension between rhetorical relativism and philosophic objectivity. Similarly, noting Hidary's contrast between the Mishnah, which “envisions an inquisitorial trial without lawyers,” and the “aggadic imagination,” which adopts the “Roman adversarial model when it portrays God's heavenly court,” some may be left wondering to what degree the distinction between earthly and heavenly approaches is tied to the generic divide between these works (268). These minor lacunae certainly do not detract from the significant contribution of the book, but rather signal potential directions for new research. Overall, Rabbis and Classical Rhetoric offers a masterful exploration of rabbinic rhetoric and is highly recommended as a standard work for all students of Talmud and rabbinic literature.
