We Who Wrestle with God — Review: Jordan B. Peterson’s meticulous close reading.
In We Who Wrestle with God, Jordan B. Peterson dives into ancient stories to discover how these stories’ characters wrestle with God and the lessons they learn in the process, from the ancient Greeks to the Bible and the Quran. Although the literary analysis applied is interesting and serves its purpose, the reading is highly meticulous and vague. It sometimes feels like a chaotic rant going from place to place, looking for whatever the text offers.
As someone who has read all JBP’s books, I was expecting a high-level close reading of the Bible when I heard he was publishing a new book with this particular title. I enjoyed reading 12 Rules for Life and Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life, but I didn’t enjoy Maps of Meaning for the same reason I didn’t enjoy reading We Who Wrestle with God: some chapters are longwinded, and it’s unclear where the chapter is heading. You feel that a message is there and that there’s something in the ‘fight with God’ that’s worth remembering, but what that message is remains in the middle.
It could be that it requires more concentration than I put into it or that I shouldn’t have bought the audiobook, but compared to his previous works, it feels like he’s rambling on without getting to the point. He leaves the existence of God in the middle, only sometimes touching upon the idea of a god-like person that exists as a person/entity in heaven or a feeling.
I did enjoy some of the elements he found in his analysis. He saw interesting parallels in the Biblical stories and traced them back to their origin in mythology (e.g. the importance of fire or approaching holy grounds barefoot).
All in all, I’d recommend this book for those who enjoy reading meticulous literary analyses. People who follow JBP might be able to draw conclusions between his current beliefs and ideas (as found in this review) and this book, and that could be empowering. However, if you’re looking for an easy or light read, I’d skip this one.
Get your copy of We Who Wrestle with God on Amazon (affiliate): https://amzn.to/3DaUVkX
