The criticisms of the book of mormon fall into several categories some of which are legitimate and some of which are not. Jul 08, 2019 a number of scientific tests have been devised to examine the authenticity of the book of mormon. Refer to the writing an effective scholarship essay guide for additional help. It is too complex, too consistent, too realistic, and too inspirational. One way to analyze whether the book of mormon is authentic is to do an academic study of its authorship. Including the mormon churches conflicting results of computer analyses of the book of mormon. You probably know that custom writing uk is a thriving niche with lots of companies that simply do business.
Some observers might view style as dependent on country of origin, while others could link the writing to a literary giant such as hemingway or twain. Jun 26, 2012 the second observation i have about the book of mormon is the use of firstperson and thirdperson writing styles. The book of mormon is the doctrinal centerpiece of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. What can stylometry tell us about book of mormon authorship. Finding biblical hebrew and other ancient literary forms in. The literary masterpiece called the book of mormon. Since the book of mormons publication in 1830, a number of. To the point, joseph smith could not have written the book of mormon for at least the following seven literary reasons. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesautomatic writing. The book of mormon lexicon or vocabulary and complexity of writing style is that of an elizabethan era scholar of the early. It would appear to us to be one long sentence, similar to the manuscript of the book of mormon that joseph smith dictated.
The most common belief of adherents is that promoted by joseph smith, who said he translated ancient golden plates inscribed by prophets. Using only the text of the book of mormon as the narration, get a. There are many reasons to study the book of mormon as literature. Are there complex lingual devices in the book of mormon. Although understated as literature in its clear and plain language, the book of mormon exhibits a wide variety of literary forms, including intricate hebraic poetry, memorable narratives, rhetorically effective sermons, diverse letters, allegory, figurative language, imagery, symbolic types, and wisdom literature. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesautomatic writing fairmormon. The largest and least legitimate of these concerns are theolo. A stylometric analysis of mormon scripture and related texts d.
It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. Dec 12, 2017 since the book of mormons publication in 1830, a number of different theories have been proposed concerning its authorship. The second observation i have about the book of mormon is the use of firstperson and thirdperson writing styles. May 03, 2008 if that were the case, you would see a similarity in writing style between the book of mormon and the book of abraham and this writing style would differ from the bible. The book of mormon pokes fun at the confidence anyone might harbor in a literal interpretation of a genesis story in this instance the tale of. The book of mormon is a literate product of a literate culture. Does the book of mormon contain jewish literary techniques. One may naturally wonder, though, if the book of mormons diversity of style is in any way unique or impressive. The book of mormon as automatic writing iii a living text. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon. Neither did i know that the book of mormon contained similar writing forms. Finding biblical hebrew and other ancient literary forms. One such task is determining the extent to which the bible, especially the new testament, was used as a source in its production, and if so, what this may mean regarding.
Linguistic anachronisms in the book of mormon are words that represent concepts that are not believed to have existed in the americas between 2500 b. This is a followup to my article, joseph smith and the american renaissance, published in dialogue. Feasting on the word is both a heartfelt and a thoughtful book, as clearly reasoned as it is faithful. The golden plates, now the book of mormon, has multiple authors. There are at least 21 categories of internal evidence that establish, to a certainty, that the book of mormon is not an early nineteenth century work of fiction. Seasoned writers have cultivated a style of writing that can be identified by a snippet of prose alone. Most adherents to the latter day saint movement view the book as a work of inspired scripture.
Writing style of the old testament i am not a linguist or an expert by any stretch of the imagination on literary writing styles. The translation of the book of mormon did not really take place in less than three months. The most recent argument in favor of joseph smith as the sole author of the book of mormon is earl m. Some have wondered, though, if the book of mormon s different styles are in any way unique or impressive. If the book of mormon was written by ancient authors, we should be able to see distinct writing styles among each different. Matt roper and paul fields, who presented at the 2018 book of mormon central conference earlier this month, used stylometry to answer one of the oldest questions of the restoration. Its not and i would discourage anyone from thinking that it is. Today style metric studies in the book of mormon have repeatedly demonstrated that it has multiple distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated within the text itself for example, the colored clouds in this graph show how the writings of major book of mormon authors form distinct clusters based on their vocabulary and on how frequently they use.
Wordprint studies of the book of mormon fairmormon. Authors have writing styles that consciously or subconsciously pervade their work. One of the most impressive types of hebrew poetry is called parallelism. Trey parker, matt stone and robert lopez, writers of the. In 2008, matthew jockers, daniela witten, and craig criddle applied two statistical methodsdelta and nearest shrunken centroid classification nscto the question of book of mormon authorship. Many such tests run by different teams over decades. This book is not considered authentic by most latter day saints. Apr 18, 2018 there are too many distinct writing styles in the book of mormon to be the work of a single author. If joseph smith wrote it then it would have just one writing style seeing how everyone has a certain writing style.
As far as we have it today, the bible is replete with jewish and greek characteristics directly in its language and writing. The book of mormon lexicon or vocabulary and complexity of writing style is that of an elizabethan era scholar of the early 17th century 200 years before joseph smith. Smith claimed the angel moroni, a prophet in the book of mormon, directed him in the 1820s to a. Anyway, its been proven the book of mormon has multiple writing styles, not one. Does the book of mormon similarly contain literary styles and techniques common. If that were the case, you would see a similarity in writing style between the book of mormon and the book of abraham and this writing style would differ from the bible. Nov 12, 2011 thus, if smiths scriptural productions borrowed material from the bible, this is entirely consistent with other instances of automatic writing.
Using wordprint analysis, a method of determining idiosyncratic subconscious patterns in the writings of any author, they conclude that 1 the book of mormon was written by many authors, and that 2 no book of mormon passages resemble the writing of any of the commonly. My intended readers are those who may have little appetite for endless footnotes from obscure sources, and are not bedazzled by credentials behind a name. Yet numerous phrases from the new testament appear in sections of the book of mormon ostensibly dating to hundreds of years before the birth of jesus. Literary japanese was at a crossroads when four missionaries for the church of jesus christ of latterday saints arrived in tokyo bay in august of 1901. Since the book of mormons publication in 1830, a number of different theories have been proposed concerning its authorship. Critics of the book of mormon have claimed that a variety of linguistic anachronisms exist in it which cast doubt upon its historical authenticity. The book of mormon gets the literary treatment religion. The styles employed by the different writers in the book of mormon vary from the unadorned to the sublime. To date, the combined data from several valid stylometric studies on the book of mormon have demonstrated that it has multiple, distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated within the text itself. There are many ways at looking at book writing styles. Book of mormon writers show an intense concern for style and tone.
One may naturally wonder, though, if the book of mormon s diversity of style is in any way unique or impressive. This paper identifies four distinct writers, and when you know what to look for, a casual reading of the book of mormon will illustrate the point. Joseph could neither have written nor directly translated the. The instances of text creation and most instances of reading texts suggest that documents were written by a. Taylor, helped navigate the first japanese translation of the book of mormon across a landscape of changing literary styles. The authors who used this device seem to have clearly understood that. At least three computer analyses have been completed to date in an effort to determine who wrote the book of mormon, and whether it was a single individual or a group. In the classroom the teacher sometimes is not able to focus on the individual matters of each student. Thus, if smiths scriptural productions borrowed material from the bible, this is entirely consistent with other instances of automatic writing. This quirk of memory, known as cryptomnesia, may also explain the presence of styles and literary patterns. Is it possible that a single author wrote the book of mormon.
No credible person can claim that joseph smith wrote the book of mormon, and it does not require a phd or a computer to prove it. Hebrew literary patterns in the book of mormon the church of. Joseph smith, the book of mormon, and the american. In this article, larsen and rencher report their findings from a statistical analysis of style in the book of mormon. Literacy and orality in the book of mormon interpreter. That said, unique literary styles in the book of mormon is not meant to satisfy all technical demands of academic scholarship.
Unique literary styles in the book of mormon, further. Perhaps the most practical method of looking at book manuscripts is with a. However, along with its incomparable spiritual message, the book of mormon contains a wealth of literary forms and figures of speech containing dozens of literary patterns. Nevertheless, behind the obvious literacy, there are clues to a primary orality in nephite culture. Does the book of mormon similarly contain literary styles and techniques common among jews. The main story takes place in jerusalem near 600 b. That wedding of the rational and the religious works well for a volume which argues that the literary dimensions of the book of mormon contribute deliberately and dramatically to its religious impact. The instances of text creation and most instances of reading texts suggest that documents were written by and for an elite class who were able to read and write. Includes ancient hebrew literary writing styles such as idioms and chiasmus. James duke, for instance, has argued that repetitive resumption in the book of mormon is not just an accidental repetition that is caused by poor writing. A secret pattern in the writing of the book of mormon. This quirk of memory, known as cryptomnesia, may also explain the presence of styles and literary patterns that are found both in the book of mormon and the bible. An analysis of seven writing styles, aimed to make you a better writer. The combination of word choice, figurative language, sentence formation, and formality work together to create a voice through.
The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. There are too many distinct writing styles in the book of mormon to be the work of a single author. Why is the book of mormon the most criticized book in. The most important thing you can do to further your writing career is to write a solid book proposal. Dec 17, 2019 literary style includes every element of writing in which an author can make stylistic choices from syntax and grammar to character and plot development. According to joseph, this translation was of mormons abridgement of the large plates of nephi a thirdperson narrative with quotes from firstperson.
Jan 16, 2018 previous studies have shown that the book of mormon contains multiple distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated in the text itself. Two tests which deal with writing styles have produced some largely ignored results which our critics cannot explain. Although part of the book of mormon purports to have been written in. Even as eloquent a defender of the book as terryl givensa professor of religion and literature at the university of richmond who has since the 1990s been an emissary of mormon culture and theology to non mormon intellectualsfelt compelled to admit that searching for literary wonders in the book of mormon is a bit like seeking lyrical. Can you explain the multiple writing styles in the book of. As far as we have it today, the bible is replete with jewish and greek characteristics directly in. The term chiasmus is never used, but this book clearly shows that hebrew poetic styles were recognized and studied even before joseph smiths time. Literary style includes every element of writing in which an author can make stylistic choices from syntax and grammar to character and plot development.
A number of scientific tests have been devised to examine the authenticity of the book of mormon. According to latterday saints, the book of mormon was written by ancient prophets who originated from jerusalem contemporaries with jeremiah, in fact, then later traveled to the americas. As we know, martin harris lost the first 119 pages of josephs translation. Joseph could neither have written nor directly translated. The tones range from moronis strident condemnations to jesus humblest pleading.
Two studies the book of mormon1 contains fifteen books one called words of mormon that tell the religious and social history of the people it describes. Jan 03, 2011 you cant get an opinion if you dont read it. Whether it is an ancient record or a modern creation, the book of mormon 1 demands examination, since it is represented to be scripture written prior to the discovery of america. Jan 25, 2018 it would appear to us to be one long sentence, similar to the manuscript of the book of mormon that joseph smith dictated. Jan 19, 2020 one way to analyze whether the book of mormon is authentic is to do an academic study of its authorship. Literary style is a unique way of presenting a piece of writing. The book of isaiah is written almost entirely in poetic form, as are most of the prophecies in the old testament, in what nephi calls the manner of prophesying among the jews 2 ne 25.
Some have wondered, though, if the book of mormons different styles are in any way unique or impressive. Though the book of mormon was written in nonhebrew script, patterns such as. Previous studies have shown that the book of mormon contains multiple distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated in the text itself. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will i receive 3 ne. Over the next eight years, one of those missionaries, young alma o. Book of mormon central teamed up with artist katie payne to create a beautiful and engaging video called the plates of mormon. What the book of mormon tells us about itself salt lake city. As a result, there are a variety of distinct literary styles in the book of mormon, ranging from classical hebrew poetical components in the writings of nephi, benjamin quoted by his son in the book of mosiah, and alma who provides us with one of the most majestic examples ever of the ancient semitic poetical form, chiasmus, in alma 36, to. At least one critic of the book of mormon attempts to explain the complexity of the book by suggesting that joseph smith wrote it using a process called automatic writing or spirit writing. Recent research demonstrates that its diversity of styles is unusually high, even greater than the combined. Refer to the writing an effective scholarship essay guide for. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi.
Book of mormon literature the encyclopedia of mormonism. For the first time, studies of the book of mormons literary qualities were. Critics point out that the presence of chiasmus in strangs writing as well as in the literature of. This volume features articles that look at literary aspects of the book of mormon, including a lyric reading of nephis psalm, the exodus pattern and moses typology in the book, the literary context that affected its acceptance in england in 1837, a. If he copied from someone, we should see that authors writing style likewise. Duke, the literary masterpiece called the book of mormon springville, ut. If one other person wrote a part of the book of mormon, then joseph smith wrote none of it.
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