Anger and Tears

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 9 considers affect and emotion as key components of prophetic embodiment. A theoretical framework drawn from neurobiology, social science, and cultural studies illumines affect’s embodied and social character while establishing its vital role in cognition, decision making, and behavior and its capacity to effect social change. In Jonah, affect is a site of negotiation and transformation. The concluding dialogue of Jonah prompts critical reflection to increase affective attunement between prophet and God. In Jeremiah, unattributed laments, interdictions against prophetic intercession, and the reversal of interdiction construct the prophet’s body as a node of circulating affect between deity, people, place, and prophet.