The Exposure of Violence: A Performative Reading of Sacrifice in Genesis 22 with Judith Butler and Giorgio Agamben

What is it about?

Genesis 22, the Aqedah or Binding of Isaac, in which God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac but does not allow it to happen at the crucial moment, is one of the most discussed texts in the Hebrew Bible. In my paper, I take a look at this passage, considering it primarily as a performative text. Using Judith Butler's and Giorgio Agamben's gesture theory, the text is described as an example of the gesture of interrupting violence.

Featured Image