''Joseph and His Brothers'' (''Joseph und seine Brüder'') is a four-part novel by

Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novell ...

, written over the course of 16 years. Mann retells the familiar stories of

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

, from

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ...

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the m ...

(chapters 27–50), setting it in the historical context of the

Amarna Period The Amarna Period was an era of Egyptian history during the later half of the Eighteenth Dynasty when the royal residence of the pharaoh and his queen was shifted to Akhetaten ('Horizon of the Aten') in what is now Amarna. It was marked by the ...

. Mann considered it his greatest work. The tetralogy consists of: * ''The Stories of Jacob'' (''Die Geschichten Jaakobs''; written December 1926 to October 1930, Genesis 27–36) * ''Young Joseph'' (''Der junge Joseph''; written January 1931 to June 1932, Genesis 37) * ''Joseph in Egypt'' (''Joseph in Ägypten''; written July 1932 to 23 August 1936, Genesis 38–39) * ''Joseph the Provider'' (''Joseph, der Ernährer''; written 10 August 1940 to 4 January 1943, Genesis 40–50)

Themes

Mann's presentation of the ancient Orient and the

origins of Judaism The origins of Judaism lie in the Bronze Age amidst polytheistic ancient Semitic religions, specifically evolving out of the polytheistic ancient Canaanite religion, then co-existing with Babylonian religion, and syncretizing elements of Babyl ...

is influenced by

Alfred Jeremias Alfred Karl Gabriel Jeremias (24 February 1864 in Chemnitz, Kingdom of Saxony – 11 January 1935) was a German pastor, Assyriologist and an expert on the religions of the ancient Near East. Life In 1891 he published the first German translati ...

' 1904 ''Das Alte Testament im Lichte des Alten Orients'', emphasizing Babylonian influence in the editing of Genesis, and by the work of Dmitry Merezhkovsky. Amarnamap

Mann sets the story in the 14th century BC and makes

Akhenaten Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, ( egy, ꜣḫ-n-jtn ''ʾŪḫə-nə-yātəy'', , meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth D ...

the pharaoh who appoints Joseph his vice-regent. Joseph is aged 28 at the ascension of Akhenaten, which would mean he was born about 1380 BC in standard

Egyptian chronology The majority of Egyptologists agree on the outline and many details of the chronology of Ancient Egypt. This scholarly consensus is the so-called Conventional Egyptian chronology, which places the beginning of the Old Kingdom in the 27th centur ...

, and Jacob in the mid-1420s BC. Other contemporary rulers mentioned include Tushratta and Suppiluliuma. A dominant topic of the novel is Mann's exploration of the status of

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narra ...

and his presentation of the

Late Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

mindset with regard to mythical truths and the emergence of

monotheism Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxfo ...

. Events of the story of Genesis are frequently associated and identified with other mythic topics. Central is the notion of

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwo ...

and the mythical

descent to the underworld A katabasis or catabasis ( grc, κατάβασις, from "down" and "go") is a journey to the underworld. Its original sense is usually associated with Greek mythology and Classical mythology more broadly, where the protagonist visits the Gree ...

. Jacob's sojourn in Mesopotamia (hiding from the wrath of

Esau Esau ''Ēsaû''; la, Hesau, Esau; ar, عِيسَوْ ''‘Īsaw''; meaning "hairy"Easton, M. ''Illustrated Bible Dictionary'', (, , 2006, p. 236 or "rough".Mandel, D. ''The Ultimate Who's Who in the Bible'', (.), 2007, p. 175 is the elder son o ...

) is paralleled with Joseph's life in Egypt (exiled by the jealousy of his brothers), and on a smaller scale his captivity in the well; they are further identified with the "hellraid" of

Inanna Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...

Ishtar Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...

Demeter In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Demeter (; Attic Greek, Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric Greek, Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Twelve Olympians, Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, ...

, the Mesopotamian Tammuz myth, the Jewish

Babylonian captivity The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile is the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were captives in Babylon, the capital city of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, following their defeat ...

as well as the

Harrowing of Hell In Christian theology, the Harrowing of Hell ( la, Descensus Christi ad Inferos, "the descent of Christ into Hell" or Hades) is an Old English and Middle English term referring to the period of time between the Crucifixion of Jesus and his re ...

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

Abraham Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Je ...

is repeatedly presented as the man who "discovered God" (a Hanif, or discoverer of monotheism). Jacob as Abraham's heir is charged with further elaborating this discovery. Joseph is surprised to find Akhenaten on the same path (although Akhenaten is not the "right person" for the path), and Joseph's success with the pharaoh is largely due to the latter's sympathy for "Abrahamic" theology. Such a connection of (proto-)Judaism and

Atenism Atenism, the Aten religion, the Amarna religion, or the "Amarna heresy" was a religion and the religious changes associated with the ancient Egyptian Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh Akhenaten. The religion centered on the cult of the god Aten, depi ...

had been suggested before Mann, most notably by

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts i ...

in his ''

Moses and Monotheism ''Moses and Monotheism'' (german: Der Mann Moses und die monotheistische Religion, ) is a 1939 book about the origins of monotheism written by Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis. It is Freud's final original work and it was completed i ...

'', which had appeared in 1939, just before Mann began work on the tetralogy's fourth part—although in the last installment of Mann's work, Akhenaten is postulated as the

Pharaoh of the Exodus The Bible makes reference to various pharaohs ( he, , ''Parʿō'') of Egypt. These include unnamed pharaohs in events described in the Torah, as well as several later named pharaohs, some of whom were historical or can be identified with histori ...

contemporary of

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

, while Mann in his novella "Das Gesetz" (1944) casts

Ramesses II Ramesses II ( egy, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is often regarded a ...

in that role. As Joseph is saved from the well and sold to Egypt, he adopts a new name,

Osarseph Osarseph or Osarsiph ( grc-koi, Ὀσαρσίφ) is a legendary figure of Ancient Egypt who has been equated with Moses. His story was recounted by the Ptolemaic Egyptian historian Manetho in his ''Aegyptiaca'' (first half of the 3rd century B ...

, replacing the Yo- element with a reference to

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He wa ...

to indicate that he is now in the underworld. This change of name to account for changing circumstances encourages Amenhotep to change his own name to Akhenaten. The tetralogy closes with a detailed account of Jacob's famous

Blessing In religion, a blessing (also used to refer to bestowing of such) is the impartation of something with grace, holiness, spiritual redemption, or divine will. Etymology and Germanic paganism The modern English language term ''bless'' likely ...

of his sons and their tribes, his death and the funeral. The characters of the individual brothers are determined by epithets taken from the text of the Blessing of Jacob throughout the details; thus Reuben is "turbulent as the waters" (and associated with

Aquarius Aquarius may refer to: Astrology * Aquarius (astrology), an astrological sign * Age of Aquarius, a time period in the cycle of astrological ages Astronomy * Aquarius (constellation) * Aquarius in Chinese astronomy Arts and entertainment ...

by Jacob). Simeon and Levi are known as the "twins" (and associated with Gemini), even though they are a year apart, and portrayed as violent bullies. Juda is a

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adu ...

( Leo), and inherits Abraham's blessing since Jacob disrobes his elder brothers of their birthright. Zebulun shows predilection for Phoenicians and seafaring. Jacob calls "bony" Issachar a donkey to evoke ''Asellus'', γ and δ of

Cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. Dan is sharp-witted and "suited as a judge" ( Libra). Asher is fond of dainties. Joseph is blessed by Jacob in his dual aspect of male ( Dumuzi, god of seed and harvest), with reference to Taurus, and female (since for Jacob, his beloved Rachel lives on in Joseph, and in his affinity with the nourishing Earth), with reference to

Virgo Virgo may refer to: *Virgo (astrology), the sixth astrological sign of the zodiac * Virgo (constellation), a constellation *Virgo Cluster, a cluster of galaxies in the constellation Virgo *Virgo Stellar Stream, remains of a dwarf galaxy * Virgo Su ...

. As Jacob comes to Benjamin, his strength is almost gone, and with his last breath he rather incoherently compares his youngest son with a wolf, partly because of

Lupus Lupus, technically known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Commo ...

in Scorpio. Image:Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn 062.jpg, '' Jacob blessing Joseph's second son first.

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...

, 1656'' Image:Friedrich_Overbeck_003.jpg, '' F. Overbeck, 1816/17: Joseph is sold by his brothers.'' Image:Philipp_Veit_002.jpg, ''

Philipp Veit Philipp Veit (13 February 179318 December 1877) was a German Romantic painter and one of the main exponents of the Nazarene movement. It is to Veit that the credit of having been the first to revive the nearly forgotten technique of fresco ...

, 1816/17: Joseph fleeing from Potiphar's wife. ''

Chapter structure

Each one of the four books is divided into seven chapters, each of which is divided into further subdivisions. The first and last book also comprise a “Prelude” each.

The Tales of Jacob

*Prelude. Descent into Hell *I. By the Well *II. Jacob and Esau *III. The story of Dinah *IV. The flight *V. Serving Laban *VI. The Sisters *VII. Rachel

Young Joseph

*I. Thoth *II. Abraham *III. Joseph and Benjamin *IV. The Dreamer *V. The Journey to the Brothers *VI. The Stone Before the Grave *VII. He Who Was Mangled

Joseph in Egypt

*I. The Journey Downwards *II. The Entrance into Sheol *III. The Arrival *IV. The Highest *V. The Man of the Blessing *VI. The Smitten One *VII. The Pit

Joseph the Provider

*Prelude in the Upper Circles *I. The Second Pit *II. The Summons *III. The Cretan Loggia *IV. The Time of Enfranchisement *V. Tamar *VI. The God-Story *VII. The Lost Is Found

Editions and translations

*''Die Geschichten Jaakobs''. S. Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. *''Der junge Joseph''. S. Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. *''Joseph in Ägypten''. S. Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. *''Joseph der Ernährer''. S. Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. *Hungarian translation by György Sárközy. Budapest: Athenaeum, 1946. *Finnish translation by Lauri Hirvensalo. Helsinki/Porvoo: WSOY, 1947. *English translation by H. T. Lowe-Porter. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1948. . *Hebrew translation by Mordechai Avi Shaul. Merhavia, Israel: Hakibbutz Haartzi Hashomer Hatzair. 4 Vol, 1957-1959. *Spanish translation by Jose Maria Souviron and Hernán del Solar. Santiago de Chile: Editorial Ercilla. 2 Vol, 1962. *Russian translation by Solomon Apt. Leningrad: Khudozhestvennaya Literatura. 2 Vol, 1968. *English translation by John E. Woods. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. . *Dutch translation by Thijs Pollmann. Uitgeverij Wereldbibliotheek, Amsterdam, 2014. .

References

Jan Assmann Jan Assmann (born Johann Christoph Assmann; born 7 July 1938) is a German Egyptologist. Life and works Assmann studied Egyptology and classical archaeology in Munich, Heidelberg, Paris, and Göttingen. In 1966–67, he was a fellow of the G ...

: ''Thomas Mann und Ägypten. Mythos und Monotheismus in den Josephsromanen''. C. H. Beck Verlag, München 2006. *Thomas L. Jeffers, "God, Man, the Devil—and Thomas Mann", ''Commentary'' (November 2005), 77–83. * Hermann Kurzke: ''Mondwanderungen. Ein Wegweiser durch Thomas Manns Josephs-Roman''. Fischer Verlag Frankfurt am Main 2004. *Bernd-Jürgen Fischer: ''Handbuch zu Thomas Manns "Josephsromanen"''. Tübingen/Basel: Francke 2002. * R. Cunningham: ''Myth and Politics in T.M.s 'Joseph und seine Brüder, Hans-Dieter Heinz Akademischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1985. * E. Murdaugh: ''Salvation in the Secular: The Moral Law in T.M.s 'Joseph und seine Brüder, Stuttgart 1976.

External links

Friedemann W. Golka: Die biblische Josephsgeschichte und Thomas Manns Roman
{{Authority control 1933 German-language novels 1936 German-language novels 1943 German-language novels 1944 German-language novels Novels set in the 14th century BC Novels by Thomas Mann Cultural depictions of Joseph (Genesis) Children of Jacob Modernist novels Novels based on the Bible Egypt in the Hebrew Bible Novels set in ancient Egypt Cultural depictions of Akhenaten Novels about siblings Inanna