When Raymond Met Delilah

Authors

  • Caroline Blyth University of Auckland

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11157/rsrr4-1-585

Keywords:

Delilah, Samson, Judges, Hebrew Bible, Raymond Chandler, femme fatale, noir, intertextuality

Abstract

Within cultural retellings of the Samson and Delilah story (Judg 16), Delilah is often presented as the quintessential femme fatale. In this paper, I consider the inspiration for Delilah’s cultural afterlives as femme fatale before exploring alternative ways to contemplate her character in the biblical text. As a guide, I read Judg 16 alongside Raymond Chandler’s hardboiled novel, Farewell My Lovely, whose plot bears strong echoes of the biblical narrative. I consider how Chandler’s complex approach to the femme fatale within his novel might invite new readings of Delilah’s character, which grant more multifaceted insights into her literary persona.

Author Biography

Caroline Blyth, University of Auckland

Lecturer in Hebrew Bible and Hebrew

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Published

2014-06-30

How to Cite

Blyth, C. (2014). When Raymond Met Delilah. Relegere: Studies in Religion and Reception, 4(1), 41–63. https://doi.org/10.11157/rsrr4-1-585

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2014)

Section

Articles

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