Religion: Shibboleth
shibboleth is a term commonly found in biblical scripturesof judges denoting a way of the use of particular expression or pronunciation used by a specific group of people to identify a person as either a member or a non-member of a particular group. The group responsible for making the identification sets out the standards for membership to their group. Shibboleth is thus a part of the universal use of language used to distinguish social groups.
Shibboleth originated in the 17th century from Hebrew dialects meaning ‘ear of corn.’ The deep ravine and the deep rivers alienated the eastern tribes of Jordan from the western, leading to the innovative adoption of peculiar customs. The narrative began during the spell of conflict between Ephraimites and Gileadites Semitic tribes.Upon the Gileadite triumphing over the Ephraimites, they set up a blockade along liver Jordan to catch the Emphramites who were fleeing back to their territory.At the barrier, they asked every person to pronounce the word Shibboleth. Due to the lack of ‘sh’ sound in Ephraimites linguistic, they pronounced it with an ‘s,’making it possible for the Gileadites to identify the enemy and slaughter them.
In modern society, the term is applied in sociology to distinguish members of a particular group from non-members. The term is also used as a jargon to identify a speaker as a member of a specific subculture or group. In the article “Shattering Shibboleth,” the author uses the term to denote the existence of two different political divides in the American government- Democrats and the republicans (Safire, 1998). The two groups have divergent views beliefs and values on the impeachment case of president Clinton where the expected outcome is based on the sided that take the majority in congress. The article depicts an America that is not based on national values but where ‘Shibboleths’ in disguise of political ideologies take precedence in determining the political ideals.. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
O’Toole (2018) Uses the term Shibboleth in his article “The Good Friday agreements is so much more than a ‘shibboleth.'” To explain the identity politics engulfing the UK political climate.The author argues that the deal ‘good Friday agreement’ was not about what the people of the United Kingdom or united Ireland were ready to die for but what they prepared to live with it. Concerning the spiralling world of politics, the agreement matters more now than when it was signed. The language of “parity of esteem “between the protestant and the nationalist fundamentally overlooked those who didn’t wish to be demarcated by these tribal groupings and was therefore a shibboleth for classifying people as either nationalist or protestant.O’Toole also argues that Brexit itself creates a shibboleth scenario of regional and territorial regrouping of the EU member states that has always operated as a united entity.The author connotes that Brexit advocates for a national identity as a territorial or genetic imperative (O’Toole, 2018), which is against the foundation of the Good Friday agreement.
References
Safire, W. (1998, October 12). Essay; Shattering Shibboleths. New York Times. Retrieved from https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A150129994/AONE?u=ocul_mcmaster&sid=AONE&xid=b1423738
O’Toole, F. (2018, April 10). The good Friday agreements is so much more than a ‘shibboleth.’ Retrieved from:https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/apr/10/good-friday-agreement-brexit-identity