Structure:
- Exposition (11:1-2) - Introduce characters
- Balance (11:3-4) - Introduce situation
- Problem (11:5-6)
- Solution (11:7-8)
- Conclusion (11:9)
Other Literary Devices:
- Leading words (build, language, face)
- Parallelism (havah..., building up/going down)
- Dramatic irony (lest we be scattered)
- Working within a confined language (similar sounding words)
From Genesis by Robert Alter:
"As many commentators have noted, the story exhibits an intricate antithetical symmetry that embodies the idea of "man proposes, God disposes." The builders say, "Come, let us bake bricks, " God says, "Come let us go down"; they are concerned "lest we be scattered," and God responds by scattering them. The story is an extreme example of the stylistic predisposition of biblical narrative to exploit interechoing words and to work with a deliberately restricted vocabulary. The word "language" occurs five times in this brief text as does the phrase "all the earth." The prose turns language itself into a game of mirrors." (page 47)
From New Studies in Genesis by Nechama Leibowitz:
"Benno Jacob in his commentary to Genesis points out that the Torah demonstrates to us in this verse (Gen. 11:2-3) how technical advances freed man from the fetters of his natural environment, enabled him to overcome natural difficulties...This technical mastery gives rise to overweening pride and self-confidence. Does it say there, "Let us build for ourselves a house as a refuge from the rain"? Or "Let us build for ourselves cities for our little ones and folds for our flock"? On the contrary, the achievements of human skill are transformed from being a means, to an end in themselves." (page 102)
Resources:
The Art of Biblical Narrative, by Robert Alter
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