Leading Through Instruction of Work: A Socio-Rhetorical Analysis in the Book of Proverbs
Leading Through Instruction of Work: A Socio-Rhetorical Analysis in the Book of Proverbs
Keith GeLarden Dayton | 2016
Abstract
This paper offers an intertexture analysis of the book of Proverbs that reflected an exegetical analysis of (a) oral–scribal intertexture, (b) historical intertexture, (c) social intertexture, and (d) cultural intertexture. The methodology used was from the work of Robbins (1996a; 1996b) through socio-rhetorical criticism in an exegetical interpretation. The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible (NRSV) and the Hebraic text of the book of Proverbs were considered in this investigation. The analysis provided an additional framework of questions which developed themes that helped shape the overall interpretation and understanding of selected verses in Proverbs, specifically on work and instruction of work by leaders in Proverbs. The results of that analysis were then applied for both instruction and work in developing themes to organize the discussion in this final chapter. Each theme followed both areas of interest in the study, instruction and work. Six themes aggregated from the socio-rhetorical analysis data emerged: (a) agriculture, (b) types and styles of instruction, (c) work as a skill, (d) outcomes, (e) transition, and (f) Yahweh. Two subthemes were developed from the theme of outcomes: hunger and poverty. Based on support from these sources, a working conceptual definition of work was brought forward. The study identified appropriate leadership styles through the leadership theories of charismatic and distributive leadership coupled with an understanding of how the culture and context of an era determined how work may have been instructed. The dissertation concludes with a discussion of the research findings, limitations, implications for contemporary organizations and the framework for future research regarding the notion of work, applicable leadership style, and instruction within the study of historical socio-rhetorical criticism.