CUR 140 : "Interpretation Module #2"
Genesis 18:16-19:29

An interpretation module is an exercise designed to help us read the text closely, with an eye for what it says explicitly, what it implies, and the distinctions between the two.

You must type out answers to these questions ­ not in full sentences, but at least in note form. Try to answer all questions fully, and take opportunities to go beyond the simple answer. Where appropriate, cite the specific verses to which your answer refers.

Pre-Text: Before you begin reading: What do you know about Sodom and Gomorrah? Have you ever heard the story of these cities referred to? In what contexts? To make what point?

Focus on the Text:
a) LITERARY CONTEXT: what has happened in the chapter or so before this passage starts? What happens in the chapter or so after it ends? Given that context, would you describe the passage as part of the main narrative thread, or as an interruption of some sort? Why?

b) GET A SENSE OF WHO IS WHO: who are the characters in the text? Which ones would you describe as "major" characters ­ and why would you describe them this way? Which would are "minor" characters ­ and why do you think they are minor? Considering both what is stated within the text and what you can infer from the text, how are characters related to one another? Which characters have "good" relationships with each other, and which ones do not?

c) GET A SENSE OF HOW THE TEXT MOVES: Are there any repetitions or breaks (odd shifts in action, focus, etc.) in the text? Does the story have an "introduction", a "body," and a "conclusion"? Are there significant or noticeable turning points in the action? What are they?

d) LOOK AT CHARACTERS CAREFULLY: 1) GOD: Find places where the text describes decisions or actions that God takes (e.g., 18:16-17). Does the text offer motives for God's actions? 2) Humans: For the major characters you have identified, find places where the text describes their actions or points of view. Does the text give you a sense of the motives behind their actions, or the reasons why they hold particular points of view?

e) ASK QUESTIONS: What does the text leave unexplained? Are there references to people, places or events that you need more information about? Do things happen without explanation, or without sufficient explanation? What are they?

f) SOME SPECIFIC ISSUES IN THIS PASSAGE: Does Lot deserve mercy from God? Why/why not? What about the other members of Lot's family ­ how are they described or treated in the story?

POST-TEXT: What is this story "about" ­ is it trying to send a message (more than one?)? What does the text tell us about God? About God's relationships with particular people? About God's relationship with people in general?