%0 Journal Article
%T Abimelech the manly man? Judges 9.1
%A Jon-Michael Carman
%J Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
%@ 1476-6728
%D 2019
%R 10.1177/0309089217720620
%X Feminist readings have long noted the gender anxiety present in the closing portion of Judges 9.1-57 where, in his last moments, Abimelech implores his armor bearer to cut him down lest he be remembered as a man killed by a woman. Utilizing Abimelech¡¯s dying, gendered fear as a point of departure, the present study undertakes a ¡®masculinist¡¯ reading of Judges 9.1-57, exploring the ways in which Abimelech¡¯s anxiety regarding his status as a ¡®true man¡¯ are present in the narrative. Adopting a model of idealized Hebrew masculinity derived from David Clines¡¯ seminal work on David and augmented by recent scholarship on masculinity readings and the Hebrew Bible, the analysis demonstrates that Abimelech is a ¡®subordinate¡¯ male desperately seeking to act as a ¡®hegemonic¡¯ male. Ultimately, however, Abimelech¡¯s performance of idealized masculinity falls short as he fails in the categories of martial prowess, wise and persuasive speech, and peer to peer bonding
%K Abimelech
%K gender performance
%K gender studies and the Hebrew Bible
%K hegemonic masculinity
%K idealized masculinity
%K Judges 9.1-57
%K masculinity
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0309089217720620