Parables of Meaning

Currently, I am taking a class over literary analysis. One of the things we discuss is different ways to read texts. During one of our periods, we were given an example showing different perspectives that a reader might have while reading. The example they used was the Prodigal Son, a parable from the Bible.

For those who are not familiar with the story, allow me to enlighten you. A man had two sons. One was devoted completely to his work and home, while the younger was rash and impetuous. One day, the youngest son went to his father and demanded his share of the inheritance early for purposes of travel. The father reluctantly gives his son the money and they part. The young man is incredibly popular at first, for he spends his money freely and without caution. However, the money soon runs out and his newfound ‘comrades’ abandon him to poverty. In despair, he goes from place to place begging for work. Eventually, he finds a place as a pig boy on a farm. He is to feed the pigs and is given to eat only what they leave behind. The young man bitterly repents his folly and the mistake he made in leaving his father’s house. He comes to the conclusion that, as his father cared for his servants and they always had enough to eat, it would be better for him to beg for a place there and work for his father. Ashamedly, the young man begins the long trek home, afraid of the reunion and the reactions of his father. As he neared the gate however, the father runs to meet him on the path and embraces him. He rejoices in the return of his son and organizes a feast to be held in celebration. The older more dutiful son complains bitterly. Stating that his brother did not deserve such a feast, when he, the loyal son, had gotten nothing of the kind for his devotion to his father.  The father explains that the older son has always been there, and so was not lost; but the younger brother was like one dead and is alive again. And that there is more rejoicing over the one that is lost and then found, than over many who are never lost at all.

Now, when Christians read this parable Biblically, we talk about the message of God. We explain how God will rejoice in our salvation as one who is lost and then found. We show how it tells us that no matter how far we stray or what sins we commit, God is always there to rejoice in our return. And, as quoted in scripture, there is more rejoicing in the kingdom of heaven over one soul who repents than ninety nine just persons who have no need to.  However, this was not how the parable was read in my class. They focused on how people would identify with the characters. The straight and narrow being sympathetic to the older son, those with a more checkered past siding with the younger, and parents who may believe the actions of the father were foolish or wise. But the point of the parable is not about this. It is not about whether you think the father should have punished the boy. It is not about whether you think that the older boy was a better son or that the younger simply made a mistake. The point of the parable is to show that regardless of mistakes, the lost will always be accepted back. It also serves to explain why this is. By making it about what the reader feels should have happened or multiple viewpoints and meanings you lose that. Sometimes there is really only one way a story is meant to be read. It is all fine and dandy to say that the story symbolizes favoritism and the injustices of siblinghood, but that defeats the purpose the story is trying to tell. When authors create a story or meaning, they have a specific thing in mind. You might be able to come up with another meaning, but that does not negate the original intent. Analysis is fine, as long as the original purpose is kept intact and in mind. The moral of the story is not a fill-in-the-blank slate.

-BlackFox

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