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VERSE: Gn44-40a
RASHIS COVERED: Gn44-40a Gn44-40b Gn44-22a Gn44-29a
Gn44-29b Gn44-31a
=============== JUDAHS SPEECH TO JOSEPH =========================
BACKGROUND
----------
Recall that Benjamin had been framed with a theft. Joseph
was claiming to keep him as a slave. Judah, Benjamins brother
has to free him--he does this by trying to induce pity in
Joseph. He would then offer to exchange himself for Benjamin.
A key component of Judahs speech to Joseph is skillful use of
the technique of exaggeration.
TEXT
----
For example Benjamin was one of 12 brothers. To exaggerate
the grief of losing him Judah exaggerates and emphasizes that
he is an ONLY child to his Mother.
THE RASHI
---------
Rashi uses a variety of techniques to infer Judahs exaggeration
Rashi uses the techniques of ALIGNMENT, CLIMAX and THE MEANING
OF ALSO. But we have classified this Rashi as an example of
OVERALL STRUCTURE. It is the OVERALL STRUCTURE of the
paragraph with its many EXAGGERATIONS which motivates Rashis
remark that Judah EXAGGERATED his claims in order to get Joseph
to have pity on Benjamin.
THE LIST
--------
We present half a dozen texts where Judah exaggerated. The
footnotes give supportive proofs where appropriate. We also
bring 2 further supports from the Biblical chapter that are
not explicitly covered by Rashi. These Rashis are a good example
of the technique overall structure. Here is the LIST
=================================================================
VERSE TEXT OF VERSE HOW IT SHOWS EXAGGERATION
======== ====================== =================================
Gn44-40a Joseph died*1 Maybe he died:Maybe he is a slave
Gn44-40b Benjy an ONLY child ONLY to Rachel;not ONLY to father
Gn44-22a Benjy will die on trip Maybe die; maybe wont*2 *14
Gn44-27 My WIFE Rachel But he had other wives*3
Gn44-28 I didnt see Joseph Didnt accept death*4
Gn44-29b I-ll go to hell*5 Citation of Exaggeration(Gn37-35)
Gn44-31a I will die Climax of preceding verses*6
NOTES
-----
*1 An alignment*10 sheds further light on this
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Gn37-30 Reuven said: Joseph ISNT AROUND
Gn42-13 The brothers said: Joseph ISNT AROUND
Gn42-36 And Jacob said: Joseph ISNT AROUND
Gn44-20 Joseph DIED
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This alignment motivates Rashis comment that Judah
exaggerated when he said JOSEPH DIED.
*2 We present a grammatical defense to Rashi.*11
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Gn44-29 And if you ALSO take Benjamin from me(Jacob)
then there will be an accident
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The word ALSO has 3 meanings*12; at its simplest level
ALSO refers to other items. So the verse means that
- Joseph was mugged while on a TRIP (Gn37-12:36)
- Rachel died while on a TRIP (Gn35-18)
Hence Jacob was worried that BENJAMIN would also come
to an accident while on a TRIP. *13
*3 Rashi doesnt explicitly state this but as is our custom
in this list we provide additional Biblical support for
Rashi (We call this the WORKBOOK method).
Jacob calls Rachel HIS WIFE even though he had other
wives. The exaggeration sets a stage for portraying how
Benjamins incarceration could lead to Jacobs death thru
a heart attack on hearing the Benjamin was lost.
*4 See footnote #1. In Gn44-40a Judah says JOSEPH DIED
while now he cites Jacob as saying AND I STILL HAVENT
FOUND HIM. This exaggeration portrays Jacob as a
bitter person who refused to accept death. *15
(This point is also not made explicit by Rashi but
fits into the overall pattern of this chapter and
his comments).
*5 Gn37-35 Jacob says I WILL GO DOWN TO HELL OVER MY SON
By citing this exaggeration of Jacob Judah heightens
the pity and prepares the stage for making reasonable
that Benjamin will die if taken.
Rashi further makes it reasonable that one more death
will kill Jacob(After all he survived the other 2).
Rashi explains that as long as Benjamin was alive he
had a link to his past. With Benjamins death he would
lose everything.
*6 Not everyone dies when losing a child. Judah had to
build up a case. Here is the climactic sequence
- I have MY SPECIAL WIFE - Rachel
- She died on a trip
- Joseph her son died on a trip
- I expect Benjamin to did on a trip also
- I will have no memory left of her--no children etc
- I will then drop dead and go to Hell
The purpose of this exaggeration was to build up a case
to induce Joseph to have pity and let Benjamin go
------------------ LONGER FOOTNOTES ------------------------
*10 I am indebted to Dr Avivah Zornberg for hinting to the
above alignment. In passing her 2 books contain much
insights into nuances of the verses that are often
overlooked.
*11 My Teacher, The Rav, Rabbi Joseph Baer Soloveitchick said
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In studying Rashi it is always good to avoid the stormy
waters of philosophy and seek refuge in the placid lakes
of grammar
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*12 See http://www.RashiYomi.Com/gam-9.htm
*13 The word ALSO is the driving force in Rashi. Rashi
however expresses himself in a FANCIFUL manner
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Death (Satan) prosecutes when people are in danger
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Rashis real point was that Judah was showing how
Benjamins other family members met a similar fate
In other words we combine Gn44-22a and Gn44-29a
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Benjamins Mother and brother died on a trip.
Since trips are dangerous and there is a family
history we are worried he would die on this trip
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*14 About a year ago someone at Shomrey Emunah asked me why
the HE in the verse refers to Benjamin (vs Jacob)
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Gn44-22 BENJAMIN cannot leave his FATHER: If HE left
HE would die
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There are two answers:
- the word HE in HE LEFT refers to Benjamin
- Hence the word HE in HE WOULD DIE refers to Benjamin
Also the principle of Climax requires us to interpret the
verses climactically:
-- Gn44-22 talks about the death of Benjamin
-- Gn44-31a talks about the death of Jacob
*15 Judah was indirectly also explaining the statement
of the brothers Gn42-13 that JOSEPH COULDNT BE FOUND
The brothers were simply being respectful to their
father who couldnt accept death.
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RASHI RULE USED: OVERALL STRUCTURE
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Volume 12 Number 12
#*#*#*#*# (C) 2001, RashiYomi Inc. Dr Hendel President #*#*#*#*#
Volume 12 Number 12