Social Science and Literary Criticism: What is at stake?

As the variety of methods used by biblical scholars multiplies, new sub-disciplines are being born that all too often leave specialists isolated from each other. While at some points the various methods complement each other, at others they remain contradictory or mutually exclusive. Two of the newer such methods, literary criticism and social-science criticism, have until now re mained in isolation. In recent months, however, a dialogue has begun to emerge that seeks to explore the common ground or lack thereof between these two methods. This article is a beginning reflection by a social-science critic on some of the issues involved.