In my opinion, the writing style of the book of mormon is very dissimilar from that of the bible. The reader will immediately note that the text is structured and formatted differently from the versions currently in print. They add emphasis to twicerepeated concepts and give definition to sharply drawn contrasts. There are too many distinct writing styles in the book of mormon to be the work of a single author. Chiasmus as used in the book or mormon are similar to those written in the bible, an ancient hebrew writing. Matt roper and paul fields, who presented at the 2018 book of mormon central conference earlier this month, used stylometry to answer one of the oldest questions of the restoration. This first article explains what stylometry is and gives readers a short history of stylometric studies performed on the book of mormon. One may naturally wonder, though, if the book of mormon s diversity of style is in any way unique or impressive. An analysis of style variations in the book of mormon 1958. Therefore, the english translation of the book of mormon not surprisingly contains characteristics of hebrew. If he copied from someone, we should see that authors writing style likewise. He teaches the book of mormon alongside herman melville s mobydick, harriet beecher stowe s dred, and lew wallace s epic benhur.
Unique literary styles in the book of mormon, further. A quest for the book that just might be the great american novel steinberg, avi on. Matt roper and paul fields, who presented at the 2018 book of mormon central conference earlier this month, used stylometry to answer one of the oldest questions. A hebraism is a way of speaking or writing that uses the grammatical or rhetorical styles of hebrew. Even within the bible there are different writing styles because there were different authors. The author, john turner, quotes eran shalev as suggesting that the unique combination of the biblical form and style that the book of mormon shares with the pseudobiblical texts, as well as their distinctly american content, provide a case for seeing smiths book as meaningfully affiliated to that page 185 american mode of writing. Why is the book of mormon the most criticized book in. Allen, who has traveled to these book of mormon lands some 40. The book of mormon is an account of the former inhabitants of this continent that contains the fulness of the everlasting gospel. The style of the book of mormon has been criticized by some as being verbose and redundant, but in most cases these repetitions are orderly and effective. A book of mistakes, error, and fraud by jon gary williams introduction the mormon church promotes the book of mormon as an inspired writing. H however, one particular type of repetitioncalled repetitive resumption is likely a feature of the book of mormon s editing process, rather than its poetry. If joseph smith wrote it then it would have just one writing style seeing how everyone has a. The language of the book of mormon exhibits features typical of a translation from an ancient near eastern text as well as the stamp of nineteenthcentury english and the style of the king james version kjv of the bible.
That the classic maya would continue this style of writing after the close of the book of mormon is quite remarkable p. However, one particular type of repetition is likely a feature of the book of mormon s editing process, rather than its poetry. A biblical scholar looks at the book of mormon mormons. This book is an easy to read collection of essays and stories about the people and places in mormon country. To date, the combined data from several valid stylometric studies on the book of mormon have demonstrated that it has multiple, distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated within the text itself. Linguistically based assertions are frequently cited and discussed in the context of the subject of. Another big blow to the entire story of the gold plates, angel, etc. The overall writing style and composition of the two books are vastly different. A secret pattern in the writing of the book of mormon.
Box 1884 salt lake city, utah 84110 bookstore 58 s. These facts are not in dispute by most modern scholars of mormonism, whether they are believers or skeptics of its claim of antiquity. This wikipedia manual of style supplement has been created through the efforts and broad consensus of contributors to wikiproject latter day saint movement. Nephi described the writing system as a combination of the learning of the jews and the language of the egyptians 1 nephi 1. An analysis of style variations in the book of mormon. I experienced all the grand euphoria and deep disappointments of that golden era discussed by gregory prince in leonard arrington and the writing of mormon history. The book of mormon is divided into smaller books, titled after the individuals named as primary authors and, in most versions, divided into chapters and verses. Moreover, previous stylometric studies have demonstrated that none of the 19th century writers usually suspected of authoring the book of mormon have writing samples that match any of its distinct styles. At johns hopkins university in baltimore, english professor jared hickman celebrates the audacity of the book of mormons style in his american bibles course. Stegner has one section of the book that deals exclusively with the mormons and a second section that focuses in on the gentiles, which the name the mormons give to nonmormons. Jan 16, 2018 to date, the combined data from several valid stylometric studies on the book of mormon have demonstrated that it has multiple, distinct writing styles and that those styles are consistent with the authors designated within the text itself. What do mormons think about the theory that the 1816 book. Am aiwj5l of tyl1tylitylaiti171 w1014lvahittom0111 in tf11i book of mitmon a thesis presented to the. Several critics have pointed to grammatical errors in the early modern english style of the book of mormon and made the argument that because the original ms, the printers ms, and the first edition of the book of mormon appear to have contained hundreds of grammatical errors, the book was therefore fabricated by smith and not divinely inspired.
Book of mormon central teamed up with artist katie payne to create a beautiful and engaging video called the plates of mormon. Smith is often cited as the author unless the person writing the. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. Mar 03, 2020 it seems likely that most latterday saints are unfamiliar with the theory. An understanding of chiasmus will also greatly enhance interpretation of book of mormon scriptures.
According to smiths account and the books narrative, the book of mormon was originally written in otherwise unknown characte. Weave into your history the religion of jesus christ and the pattern of christian living. According to hugh nibley, the father of contemporary mormon scriptural and theological scholarship, the book of mormon can and should be tested. Likely sources and influences for the book of mormon. Writing style of the book of mormon the writing style of the book of mormon is different than the bible. They compared twentyfour book of mormon authors each having at least 1,000 words to each other, and concluded on the basis of three separate statistical tests that these authors were distinct from each other and oliver cowdery, joseph smith, jr. Many ancient authors contributed to the book of mormon, each with his own style. With its approachable writing style and wealth of usable information, teachings and commentaries on the book of mormon is an invaluable resource for personal study, family instruction, speaking assignments, lesson preparation, missionary work, and more. Joseph smith didnt just share james fenimore coopers meandering makeitupasyougo writing style, the death of the last living member of a native american tribe is something that happens not once, but twice in the book of mormon. It describes the full background on the coming forth of the book and its translation process using insights gained from some of the earliest documents available. It is either a true record and joseph is a prophet who was called to translate it. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints, 1981, 2nd. Two tests which deal with writing styles have produced some largely ignored results which our critics cannot explain. While the book of mormon is richly chiastic, extensive structural chiasmus has yet to be found in any other literature in the world other than the hebrew.
Can you explain the multiple writing styles in the book of. Most adherents to the latter day saint movement view the book as a work of inspired scripture. Joseph smiths writing is characteristically marked by series of related ideas joined by simple conjunctions. It is the sacred text for the 15 millionstrong church of jesus christ of latterday saints. These writers include sidney rigdon, solomon spalding, w. There are only two options when it comes to the book of mormon. Chiasmus is in a literature if and only if its roots are hebraic. Is anyone able to explain the writing style chiasmus which is a known hebraic style of writing which is supposedly used throughout the book of mormon. Citing the book of mormon and other common religious sources mla the book of mormon. Jan 03, 2011 anyway, its been proven the book of mormon has multiple writing styles, not one.
The book of mormon is written in biblical style as a prophetic work to make things clearer than the bible but in an american setting. Jun 26, 2012 i have read the book of mormon several times as i have the bible and to me they do not use the exact same vernacular as you indicate. The initial book of mormon wordprint studies were carried out by larsen, rencher, and layton. Book of mormon language the encyclopedia of mormonism. That said, unique literary styles in the book of mormon is not meant to satisfy all technical demands of academic scholarship. Without offering either support or explanation, millet declared, it may well be that the perfect pattern for the writing of our story a sacred history is contained in the book of mormon. I actually dealt with this topic in another answer how could joseph smith write the book of mormon. This volume will change the way you read and study the book of mormon. The golden plates, now the book of mormon, has multiple authors. Although nephi understood this would be the case, he still included many of isaiahs words in the book of mormon. The criticisms of the book of mormon fall into several categories some of which are legitimate and some of which are not. This knowhy is the first in a series which discusses stylometry and its relevance to questions of book of mormon authorship.
Leonard arrington and the writing of mormon history byu. This study of this is called analyzing word patterns, wordprinting or stylometry. Its not and i would discourage anyone from thinking that it is. Chiasmus and the book of mormon utah lighthouse ministry.
The book opens with a 32page introduction, the most comprehensive of any edition of the book of mormon. Explain that some people struggle to understand the prophecies of isaiah because of his poetic writing style and frequent use of imagery. Further, the writing has been deciphered a fact not mentioned by dr. Elder holland speaks at book of mormon chiasmus conference. For example, parallelisms, which abound in the book of mormon, serve many functions. A close analysis of the book of mormon reveals explicit use of nineteenthcentury language, ideas, and writing style, as well as dependence upon the king james bible. At 50,840 words, manuscript found is less than a fifth the size of the book of mormon. Citations for religious texts in a chicago style paper will appear in. To the point, joseph smith could not have written the book of mormon for at least the following seven literary reasons.
This theory that there was a connection between the book of mormon and the late war between the united states and great britain was. The hebrew background of the book of mormon book of. If the book of mormon was written by ancient authors, we should be able to see distinct writing styles among each different author. The writing style of the book of mormon is different than the bible. May 03, 2008 writing style of the book of mormon the writing style of the book of mormon is different than the bible. Is anyone able to explain the writing style chiasmus which is. The largest and least legitimate of these concerns are theolo. An informal analysis by jerald and sandra tanner of joseph smiths writing style. This claim, as well as all claims to historical authenticity of the book of mormon, are rejected by nonlatter day saint historians and scientists. The book of mormon gets the literary treatment religion. If joseph smith wrote it then it would have just one writing style seeing how everyone has a certain writing style. Many of these repetitions have to do with poetic structures called parallelisms. Apart from chaismus, there are many forms of hebraic writing in the text of the book of mormon which are natural to hebrew yet awkwardsounding in english. The plain and more accessible writings of nephi, jacob, abinadi, and christ act as keys to illuminate isaiah, and the writings of isaiah in turn act as a key to fully unlock the profound nature of book of mormon prophetic thought.
They were taking the word of their pastor, or mom, or friend and writing off the book for good. This suggests that the book of mormon was translated from ancient text, he said, and not authored in the 1800s. We do not know exactly what language was used on the original plates of the book of mormon. It might be the funniest thing in the world to me when someone tells me with absolute certainty that the book of mormon isnt true after having admitted never actually reading the book themselves. Thus it seems that we are able to meet the demands of an exceptionally strong conditional here. Even though mormon is a narrator, the actual books are written in 1st person. Please follow these conventions when you contribute to latter day saints articles so that they are neutral and stylistically consistent for better and easier reader comprehension. At remarks given at brigham young university wednesday, john welch, who first identified the ancient writing style chiasmus in the book of mormon, said, the discoveries of chiasmus whether in the book of mormon or in the bible belong to all of us. Joseph could neither have written nor directly translated the.
An observant reader of the book of mormon quickly notices that the style of english used there is similar to that of the king james authorized translation of the bible, with thee and thou and verb phrases like hath seen or frequent use of behold. Not because the spirit tells me so or because the book. These panels are covered with maya glyphsnot hebrew writing in any form. But what critics mean when they speak of the presence of antimasonic rhetoric in the book of mormon is that the book adopted certain words and. What can stylometry tell us about book of mormon authorship. For example, if originally written in english, the book of mormon would speak about brass plates instead of plates of brass. For example, while the text of the book of mormon is similar to the language of the king james version of the bible, the text of manuscript found is not. Is it possible that a single author wrote the book of mormon. The most common belief of adherents is that promoted by joseph smith, who said he translated ancient golden plates inscribed by prophets.
The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. In some countries, education is not really important. If the book of mormon is found to contain true chiastic forms in an ancient style, then is not the books own repeated claim to be the product of an ancient culture veritably substantiated. Jerald and sandra tanner of utah lighthouse ministry, an evangelical group known for its intense opposition to and criticism of the lds church, performed their own brief computer study. Jul 08, 2019 a number of scientific tests have been devised to examine the authenticity of the book of mormon. Partridge who commented on joseph smiths style of writing. A quest for the book that just might be the great american novel. Larsen and his associates concluded that the book of mormon was written in distinct authorship styles and that none of the 19th century candidates that they tested resemble book of mormon authors in style. According to most adherents of the latter day saint movement, the book of mormon is a 19thcentury translation of a record of ancient inhabitants of the american continent, which was written in a script which the book refers to as reformed egyptian. Why is it impossible for joseph smith to have been the. Chiasmus in the book of mormon religious studies center. Chiasmus and the book of mormon by sandra tanner some lds writers are trying to establish the historicity of the book of mormon by maintaining that it contains a poetic style, sometimes used in the bible, called chiasmus see. Joseph smiths plagiarism of the bible in the book of mormon by jerald and sandra tanner utah lighthouse ministry p. Reuben clark law school at byu, first identified this particular writing style in the book of mormon while he was a missionary serving in regensburg, germany, in 1967.
Finding doctrine and meaning in book of mormon isaiah. As a believer in the book of mormon, i was attracted by this assertion. My intended readers are those who may have little appetite for endless footnotes from obscure sources, and are not bedazzled by credentials behind a name. Thank you for your interest in writing for and the more good foundation. Those who pick up this book are in for a most interesting, though sometimes uncomfortable, read.
Modern bible translations generally avoid archaic language and use contemporary language. How do you reference the book of mormon in apa style answers. Members argue that theres no possible way joseph smith could have know or mastered such an intricate way of writing and must be a translation. Anyway, its been proven the book of mormon has multiple writing styles, not one. This style guide was prepared to help you understand how you should write your content so it is professional and easy to understand for our various readers. It is written in english very similar to the early modern english linguistic style of the king james version of the bible, and has since been fully or partially translated into 111. I was going through my notes when i found this paper that my trainer from my mission gave me. Naturalistic explanations of the origin of the book of mormon. Im surprised more hasnt been written about this connection. However, after a fair and candid examination of the evidence, many thousands of. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon. May 23, 2017 t he book of mormon is a wholly american scripture.
Leonard arrington and the writing of mormon history byu studies. Book of mormon wordprint or word pattern studies parent page. The book of mormon lexicon or vocabulary and complexity of writing style is that of an elizabethan era scholar of the early 17th century 200 years before joseph smith. Using only the text of the book of mormon as the narration, get a. Jun 09, 2011 writing the book of mormon dan charness. If joseph smith wrote the book of mormon, we should be able to see his literary style across the entire book. Wordprint studies of the book of mormon fairmormon. The book of mormon is full of repeated words and phrases. You must claim that your smooth narrative is not fiction with moral value, but true and sacred history. Book of mormon literature the encyclopedia of mormonism. The annotated edition of the book of mormon has been formatted to enlarge our understanding of and give reverence to this unique and sacred volume of scripture. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi.