Fact-Checking the Torah -- Olrik's conjunction

And finally, why isn’t my use of Olrik’s principles a case of the conjunction fallacy?

Well, look back at the DH description of the documents. Graf and Whybray agreed, at opposite ends of over 100 years, that some of them are subjective, not objective. What’s more, I turned up that parts of them are factually false or disproven, or incorporate fallacies.

Olrik’s principles, on the other hand, play upon objective information in his source texts with consistent application of the rules and without fallacies like sampling bias.

In addition, Olrik’s principles are not hanging out there without a net. They correlate with known features of human nature, from the fragility of memory, to the nature and contents of gossip whether face-to-face or on social media.

Olrik’s principles independently express the first rule of Sapir-Whorf Linguistic Theory from later in the 20^th century; they dovetail with Dr. Cook’s 21^st century description of the grammar of Biblical Hebrew as far as that goes.

Olrik coordinates with archaeologist William Dever and some of his colleagues in showing that cultures do not spring fully formed at the time they develop or adopt writing. Writing becomes a factor after they’ve been up and running for a while. Cultura non facit saltus, remember? And until then, they share information among themselves orally, using entertainment to convey behavioral norms.

Olrik’s principles don’t just describe Jewish Torah, they also explain some of the differences between Torah and its nearest relative, Samaritan Pentateuch. Other differences relate to a common pattern of linguistic change in orally transmitted material (Saenz-Badillo’s work).

Cross-fertilization between Olrik’s principles and other fields is exactly what DH doesn't do, which is what helps to make it a Linda problem and not a science.

Torah is the written record of an oral tradition transmitted by the ancestors of the Jews for about 6000 years prior to the 21^st century, and continuing today. It was not just narratives they told for fun, but narratives embodying their laws.

Which is where I started this blog.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Don’t forget to pick up your coats in the lobby.

(Added later: OK I am not leaving you high and dry having withdrawal symptoms.)