SOURCE: Hamel, Gildas. “Taking the Argo to Nineveh: Jonah and Jason in a Mediterranean Context.” Judaism 44, no. 3 (Summer 1995): 341-59.

In the following essay, Hamel describes how motifs found in the tale of Jason and the Argonauts also function in Jonah.

Naturally, the Book of Jonah must be read, first and last, within its Hebrew context. Indeed, the text reverberates, especially to Hebrew ears, with clear echoes of biblical passages that come from the Noah story, from Jeremiah, Joel, and other prophets.¹ In numerous studies, commentators have pointed out these intertextual links, while disagreeing on the exact nature of their reemployment. They wonder if the author is being ironic, satirical, parodic, allegorical, or didactic.² Still, the story of Jonah also reads like a maritime tale whose meaning might be enriched and its themes emerge in bolder relief, were it set against its Mediterranean background, especially Greek lore. Wedged between...