The "Book of Mormon": A Biography (Lives of Great Religious Books) Rating :
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful.
A Nice Overview of the History of the Book of Mormon
By Eric F. Facer
Disclaimer: I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Saints (i.e., I'm a Mormon). Within my Church I am viewed by some as an "intellectual"--not because I'm smart, but because I do not take at face value what leaders of our church say, I ask questions, I sometimes disagree with the policies of my church, and my first loyalty is always to the truth, never to any organization. With that out of the way, here are my thoughts on Mr. Gutjahr's book.
I liked it. I thought it was fair and balanced and exhibited a thorough grasp of the subject matter. The author has clearly done his homework. He did not make any egregious errors (at least that I found) concerning Church history, policies or practices. This is unusual for an outsider who is writing his first book about Mormonism.
Also, even though I have about 80 volumes of Mormon Church history/biography in my library, I learned several things I did not know about the B of M and its evolution over the past 180 years. The editing and publishing history were particularly intriguing, and I was fascinated by the protocols the church follows when translating and publishing the book in new foreign languages.
My lone criticism is that it was too cursory. For example, I wish the author had elaborated somewhat on the manner in which Joseph Smith translated the book. Brant Gardner recently published the definitive work on this subject ("The Gift and the Power"), which I am sure Mr. Gutjahr has read. It would have been nice if he had included a page or two of Mr. Gardner's insights in his book.
Similarly, the author raises some of the DNA issues that are at the center of the controversy surrounding the B of M's historicity, but he does not explore them in great depth. And he mentions Hugh Nibley's efforts to find Middle East cultural and religious references in the B of M but he doesn't address the differences of opinion that exist among Mormon scholars on this subject. In sum, at the end of the book, I sort of felt like Oliver: "Please sir, can I have some more?"
Perhaps my criticism is unfair. I am not familiar with other volumes in the "Lives of Great Religious Books" series. It may be that this "general overview" format is what Mr. Gutjahr's publisher told him to follow. Still, there just wasn't enough meat on the bones to suit my taste, though it was a pleasant snack.
19 of 21 people found the following review helpful.Academic Introduction to an Underappreciated Book
By Matthew R. Lee
In roughly the same physical dimensions as the English language missionary edition of the Book of Mormon, Paul C. Gutjahr provides readers with a compelling survey of the publication history of the text that gave Mormons their name.
"The "Book of Mormon": A Biography" is not a detailed analysis of what is in the book; it is a review of what the book has become. The Lives of Great Religious Books series from Princeton University Press recognizes that all "great religious books are living things whose careers in the world can take the most unexpected turns" (back flap).
Nearly every entry-level book on Mormons of necessity repeats the story of the faith's beginnings. Readers versed in the history surrounding the initial publication of the Book of Mormon may be inclined to skip the prologue and chapter one to avoid redundancy and rush to find something new. Those who do will miss an opportunity to hear a solid presentation of the facts from a thoughtful scholar. In less than forty pages, Gutjahr succeeds in following the internal timeline of the Book of Mormon and in expanding on often overlooked aspects that contributed to the publication of the book in 1830.
All of the standard topics are covered. The accounts of Smith's unusual translation and dictation method, Egbert B. Grandin's initial reluctance to print the manuscript, Lucy Harris and Isaac Hale's skepticism, the missing 116 manuscript pages, Charles Anthon's meeting with Martin Harris, Oliver Cowdery's connection to Ethan Smith, the visitations of the angel Moroni, Abner Coles' unauthorized pre-publication release of excerpts from the Book of Mormon in his paper The Reflector, the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the witnesses who saw and held the plates, each receive attention.
No historical account of Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon is complete without mention of the early criticism of the text. Doctor Philastus Hurlbut, Eber Dudley Howe's 1834 book "Mormonism Unvailed" [sic], the second Spaulding manuscript theory, and Ethan Smith "View of the Hebrews" have secured a space in the public square solely because of their relationship to the Book of Mormon. Their mention is unavoidable. Likewise, Gutjahr reviews the various naturalistic theories of Isaac Woodbridge Riley and Fawn McKay Brodie in the first half of the twentieth century as well as those of more recent critics such as Robert Anderson, Dan Vogel, and William D. Morain. Gutjahr neither endorses or rejects these interpretations. No attempt is made to answer the question, is it "holy writ or humbug?"
In 1837 and in 1840, Joseph Smith published revised editions of the Book of Mormon. The 1837 Kirtland edition contained thousands of grammar changes. "Saith" became "said" and "which" became "who", over nine hundred times collectively. The well known addition of "the Son of" into 1 Nephi 13:40 is the result of this revision (The chapter and verse in Gutjahr's book are transposed to 14:30). The 1840 Nauvoo edition contained fewer than fifty changes including a change in 2 Nephi 30:6, from "white and delightsome" to "pure and delightsome" (p. 64-65, 89-91).
Following a review Joseph Smith's death in 1844, and various claims to succession, Gutjahr focuses on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the prime custodian, publisher, and endorser of the Book of Mormon. The 1908 and 1966 and other Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (RLDS) editions receive discussion, but the dominant focus is on Latter-day Saint editions.
The 1841, 1849, and 1852 editions published in England, were based on the 1837 Kirtland edition missionaries brought to England prior to 1840. After the 1847 migration from Nauvoo, Illinois to the Salt Lake Valley, Latter-day Saint leaders relied on the capabilities of their associates in Liverpool to print the Book of Mormon. "Sometime around 1870" the stereotype plates from the 1852 edition arrived in Salt Lake City, leading to Orson Pratt's 1879 edition (p. 90 - 91). With the exception of an 1842 reprint, the changes in 1840 Nauvoo edition were not integrated into any other Latter-day Saint edition of the Book of Mormon until 1981. It was however, the basis for the 1858 New York edition published by Jason Wright. This edition is listed in Appendix 1, "Notable Book of Mormon Editions in English," but nowhere else in the text (p. 202).
Orson Pratt wrote chapter summaries, shortened the length of chapters, formatted verses, cross references, and added geographical references as footnotes linking locations in the book with places like Chile and the Rocky Mountains (p.95). The geographical references were dropped from the 1920 edition, formatting changed to double columns, and dates added to each page. The formatting of the 1920 edition was a parallel to the formatting of most Bibles published in the United States, thus increasing the scriptural feel of the Book of Mormon (p. 95 -97).
Gutjahr recognizes the work of Hugh W. Nibley, John W. Welch, FARMS, the limited geography model popularized by John L. Sorenson, Royal Skousen's study on textual variants in the manuscripts, Grant Hardy, Thomas Ferguson, and Scott Woodward. Each receive attention in the chapter on scholarship. Likewise, the 1982 subtitle "Another Testament of Jesus Christ," Church President Ezra Taft Benson's call to flood the earth with the Book of Mormon, the 2004 Doubleday edition, and the 2008 Penguin Classics edition belong to a list of factors contributing to naturalization of the text.
For true bibliophiles Gutjahr shares the of the binding process of the missionary editions of the Book of Mormon. Rather than animal-based glues, a special polyurethane adhesive that can withstand extreme temperatures is used for binding. Samples of the books are literally frozen, thrown in washing machines, tumbled and dried to simulate the effects of various climates and conditions (p.132 -133). In additional to physical integrity, cultural consideration is a production factor. For example, because white represents death in Japanese culture, Japanese editions of the book have cream-colored pages.
If the words printed on those cream-colored pages seem awkward, it may be intentional. According to Gutjahr, the "Scripture Translation Manual" instructs translators of the Book of Mormon to retain redundant expressions, every instance of "and it came to pass," chiasmic sentence structure, and the style of each author. The goal of translating the Book of Mormon is to achieve a formal equivalency rather than functional equivalency. "Formal equivalency," Gutjahr says, "seeks to bring the reader back to the world of the ancient text, while functional equivalency seeks to transport the ancient text into the world of the modern reader" (p. 127). By contrast, the editors of the RLDS 1966 New Authorized Version of the Book of Mormon modernized the language and removed over a thousand iterations of "and it came to pass" (p. 83).
Appendix 2, "Book of Mormon Translations," is a list of 109 Book of Mormon translations beginning in 1830 with English and ending in 2008 with Sinhala, the official language of Sri Lanka (p. 208). Each entry in the list contains the original publication year, whether or not the translation is the full book or selections from the book, and the publication year of the current edition. Although chapter four discusses the 1869 translation of the Book of Mormon into the Deseret Alphabet, including a photo of the title page, the translation is not listed in the Appendix (p. 94, 205).
Illustrated editions of the text began with George Reynolds' 1888 "Story of the Book of Mormon." Much like Orson Pratt's inclusion of geographical references in the footnotes, Reynolds commissioned artists to create illustrations that contained Aztec hieroglyphics and a mix of old world biblical imagery (p. 156). Arnold Friberg's hypermasculine paintings, added to the Book of Mormon in 1963, also contained a mix of new and old world symbols and were accompanied by photographs of Monte Alban in Oaxaca Mexico, Peruvian gold plates, and other pre-Columbian artifacts. The photographs were dropped for the 1981 edition but Friberg's paintings remained. Gutjahr includes a photo of Friberg with a full beard and long hair working on his painting "Abinadi Appearing before King Noah." Unable to find suitable models, Friberg grew out his hair and became his own model (p.168). Gutjahr also acknowledges Minerva Teichert's Book of Mormon murals.
Gutjahr's final chapter discusses several film and stage productions based on the Book of Mormon beginning in 1915 with William A. Morton's 1915 Church funded silent movie "The Life of Nephi" and again in 1931 with Lester Park's "talking movie", "Corianton: A Story of Unholy Love." Although the Church did not endorse Park's film, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed the score written by Edgar Stillman-Kelly. Prior to Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone's 2011 Broadway production "The Book of Mormon," winner of nine Tony Awards, the most successful Book of Mormon based stage production was "America's Witness for Christ" also known as the Hill Cumorah Pageant. Now in its eighty-third year of production the author of the current script is Lester Park's grandson, Orson Scott Card (p.191).
In the epilogue Gutjahr points out that as the Church works to maintain editorial control in the preservation of its sacred text, the Book of Mormon is becoming more and more a part of American culture. Gutjahr's biography is one more confirmation that interest in the Book of Mormon is expanding well beyond "the borders of Zion" (D&C 107:74).
13 of 18 people found the following review helpful.A fine, though undercritical, overview of the subject
By Anson Cassel Mills
This small book--a little taller (and mercifully much shorter) than the missionary edition of the Book of Mormon--has many fine parts that should interest both believers and non-believers. For instance, Chapter 2 provides an excellent introduction to theories about the origin of the book, and Chapter 3 elegantly describes the how the Book of Mormon was received by lesser sects within the Latter Day Saint movement. I also found informative Chapter 7, a discussion of illustrations of the book, especially the preference of the LDS Church for the mixed biblical-Teutonic style of Arnold Friberg, horned helmets and all. Finally, much of the material in the final chapter, "The Book on Screen and Stage" was new to me, though Gutjahr did ignore Leroy Robertson's Oratorio from the Book of Mormon, with its brooding setting of The Lord's Prayer; and he included the wildly successful Broadway musical, which shares little connection with the book except its name and the broad spoofing of its stories.
Nevertheless, as a non-Mormon, I found Gutjahr's work overly sympathetic to an LDS point-of-view. For instance, Gutjahr's discussion of the First Vision takes Smith at his word that he had "a highly personal encounter with God at the age of fourteen" although there is no evidence Smith ever mentioned such a vision until 1832, two years after he founded the Mormon church. (The very different, canonized version of the story came at least six years after that). Likewise, Gutjahr understatedly describes Smith's early financial supporter Martin Harris as "somewhat religiously enthusiastic," although one neighbor testified that Harris had seen Jesus in the shape of a deer and another declared, "Martin was a man that would do just as he agreed with you. But, he was a great man for seeing spooks." Gutjahr's discussion of the Three and Eight Witnesses to the golden plates similarly treats their testimony without regard to their time and place and the magic worldview they shared.
My greatest complaint about Gutjahr is his insistence that the Book of Mormon is an "immensely complex narrative" (149) that "should rank among the great achievements of American literature." (9) I would argue to the contrary that the Book of Mormon is, as Mark Twain called it, "chloroform in print," written in wretched prose with characters who are absolutely flat. One does not have to believe the Bible to be supernatural to marvel at say, its rounded characterization of David, who impregnates his subordinate's wife, insures the subordinate is killed in battle, fasts and prays over the sick child conceived in adultery, and then arises and eats after the child dies. As the late literary critic Sir Frank Kermode has written, if moments like these "occurred in a novel we should admire its depth and its surprise." There are no such moments in the Book of Mormon; and it makes no difference if 90% of the world's population can read it in their native tongue if the majority of its readers endure its gracelessness only from a sense of religious duty.
Product Description
Late one night in 1823 Joseph Smith, Jr., was reportedly visited in his family's farmhouse in upstate New York by an angel named Moroni. According to Smith, Moroni told him of a buried stack of gold plates that were inscribed with a history of the Americas' ancient peoples, and which would restore the pure Gospel message as Jesus had delivered it to them. Thus began the unlikely career of the Book of Mormon, the founding text of the Mormon religion, and perhaps the most important sacred text ever to originate in the United States. Here Paul Gutjahr traces the life of this book as it has formed and fractured different strains of Mormonism and transformed religious expression around the world.
Gutjahr looks at how the Book of Mormon emerged from the burned-over district of upstate New York, where revivalist preachers, missionaries, and spiritual entrepreneurs of every stripe vied for the loyalty of settlers desperate to scratch a living from the land. He examines how a book that has long been the subject of ridicule--Mark Twain called it "chloroform in print"--has more than 150 million copies in print in more than a hundred languages worldwide. Gutjahr shows how Smith's influential book launched one of the fastest growing new religions on the planet, and has featured in everything from comic books and action figures to feature-length films and an award-winning Broadway musical.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #181570 in Books
- Published on: 2012-03-05
- Original language:English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 7.99" h x5.00" w x.98" l,.77 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 280 pages
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