Description: This book applies the textual theory of American Marxist Fredric Jameson for a critical reading of the book of prophet Haggai.
Brief description: Malutafa Faalili is lecturer in Old Testament Studies at Malua Theological College in the islands of Samoa.
Review Quotes:
"Malutafa Faalili's rigorous analysis of the rhetoric of the Hebrew text of Haggai and well-researched discussion of its' socioeconomic context will be of interest, not only to specialists in Haggai and Marxist criticism, but to everyone concerned with decolonizing biblical interpretation. His discussions of the dynamics of honor and shame, social groups, imperial, royal, and family ideologies, different economies, and cultural transformation are as interesting as they are insightful." --Arthur Walker-Jones University of Winnipeg
"Politics in the Book of Haggai takes political exegesis to a whole new level. Reading Haggai through Jameson's hermeneutic of History, Faalili patiently works away at the text until it reveals its political unconscious: the reluctance of the people to build the temple. This reading confidently speaks to and from the social, political, and economic context of Samoa and questions the need for colonial treasure houses in struggling communities. This implicates us all." --Christina Petterson, Ilisimatusarfik, University of Greenland