The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

By Martin J. Buss
(Emory Univetsity, Atlanta, Ga. 30322)

As is well known, H. Gunkel coined the phrase »Sitz im Leben« in

order to designate a concern of major interest to him. The term, to-
gether with the concept intended, may be regarded äs his most impor-
tant contribution to methodology. It is the purpose of the present dis-
cussion to clarify the concept, to show its history within interdiscipli-
nary endeavor, and to point to ways in which it needs to be modified
for progress in understanding. In any modification it may be better to
use a different term, in order to preserve for Sitz im Leben the meaning
which H. Gunkel assigned to it.

H. Gunkel's Concept
The term Sitz im Leben, äs employed by H. Gunkel, refers to the
social usage in which a genre originates, to be distinguished from the
contexts in which individual instances or applications of the genre may
occur1. Some later writers, especially in New Testament studies since
M. Dibelius, have applied the term also t o the setting of a particular
text2, e. g., of a psalm or parable; such a usage blurs the distinctive
meaning of the phrase. The concept of Sitz im Leben synthesizes t wo
considerations: a concern with genres and a historical focus on origina-
ting circumstances; these two methodological orientations joined to-
gether at the end of the nineteenth Century3.
H. Gunkel's conceptualization developed gradually. The first
step, published in 1895, makes the point that certain features of expres-
1
E. g., ZAW 42 (1924), 183: »ein bestimmter >Sitz im Lebern des Volkes, an dem sie
[die Gattung] ursprünglich ihre eigentümliche Stätte gehabt hat«.
2
E. g., M. Dibelius, Formgeschichte des Evangeliums, 19333, 9. Also: K.-H. Bernhardt,
Die gattungsgeschichtliche Forschung am Alten Testament als exegetische Methode,
1959, 41; J. F. A. Sawyer, Context of Situation and Sitz im Leben, Proceedings of
the Newcastle upon Tyne Philosophical Society l (1967), 142f. R. Lapointe, Les
genres littöraires apres l'ere gunkölienne, figlise et TheOlogie l (1970), 16; G. Fohrer
et al., Exegese des Alten Testaments, 1973, 196 (in some tension with 93—95?);
K. Koch, Was ist Formgeschichte?, 19748, 49. 74. 201f. 216 (for this reason he can
speak of a new Sitz, 45). H. Gunkel's closest approach to such a usage appears in
a somewhat vague Statement of Einleitung in die Psalmen, 1933, 10.
3
For the general movement and its sociological aspects, see M. Buss, The Study of
Forms, in: John Hayes, ed., Old Testament Form Criticism, 1974, l—56.
11*

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158 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

sion have a literary4 home from which they can move into other
genres. Specifically, he derived prophetic participial style from the
hymn and proposed that theophanic descriptions had their »Sitz« in
poems regarding Sinai5. The idea of a Sitz refers to an »original« context.
To what extent this is a usef ul concept (instead of the simpler and clea-
rer one of an »earlier« context), or to what extent the examples given
are valid, requires further discussion6.
A second step places emphasis on the occasion with which a literary
piece or genre is associated, called its »Situation«. It is helpful to quote
key portions of the relevant passage in the introduction to Genesis
(1901, xviiif.): »Wollen wir die Sagen besser verstehen, so müssen wir uns
die Situation vor Augen malen [in which they were told. Of such]
Situationen hören wir [in Ex 12 and 13, etc., with the questions of
children concerning a sacred custom or symbol]. Die gewöhnliche Situ-
ation aber, die wir uns zu denken haben, ist diese; am müßigen Winter-
abend sitzt die Familie am Herde [adults and especially children liste-
ning to stories from the Urzeit. For certain poems] dürfen wir an eine
andere Situation denken«, namely, the festival. The body of the Genesis
commentary, which was probably written prior to the introduction,
employs the word »Situation« in a much less technical sense, äs does a
publication by H. Gunkel appearing in 19007; in the usage of that
time, »Situation« referred either to historical circumstances or to the
condition expressly described by a text8. In the following years, H.
Gunkel frequently employed the word, especially in connection with the
psalms; it is applied both to the normal or original setting of a genre9
and to the actual setting or circumstance of a given poem10. This second
step, which connected literature with recurring occasions, was very
powerful and still relatively free from doctrinaire or rigid assumptions.
4
The words »literary« and »literature« refer not only to written expressions, but
include oral materials (äs in O. Gruppe, Die griechischen Culte und Mythen in ihren
Beziehungen zu den orientalischen Religionen, 1887, iv; H. Paul, Grundriß der ger-
manischen Philologie, I 1891, 216; H. Gunkel, Die israelitische Literatur, in: Kultur
der Gegenwart, I/VII 1906, 66).
6
Schöpfung und Chaos, 1895, 99. 104. (W. Klatt, Hermann Gunkel, 1969, 79, notes
the second instance.)
6 ör
J g Jeremias, Theophanie, 1965, draws even more extensive conclusions from the
limited material. On the hymnic participle, see below, note 64.
7
Genesis, 1901, 72. 203. 208. 216; Das Vierte Buch Esra, in: E. Kautzsch, ed., Die
Apokryphen und Pseudepigraphen des Alten Testaments, II 1900, 359.
8
E. g., J. Wellhausen, Israelitische und jüdische Geschichte, 18973, 141; C. Cornill,
Einleitung in das Alte Testament, 18963, 228.
Ausgewählte Psalmen, 1904, 40. 75. 240. 264. 266f.
10
Ibid. 42. 75; Die israelitische Literatur, 1906, 67; RGG, IV 1913, 1640; Einleitung
in die Psalmen, 104. The more Standard meaning still appears in Ausgewählte Psal-
men 8. 31. 218. 231.

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 159

A third step f ocuses on a contrast between a practical oral Situation

(»life«) and an artificial written usage. The phrase Sitz im Leben makes
its first appearance, with a still nontechnical force, within a discussion
of this contrast (in 1906): »Die ältesten Gattungen, die ihren Sitz im
Leben haben [i. e., which have an active connection with life processes],
bestimmte Zuhörer ins Auge fassen und bestimmte Wirkung erstreben,
sind ebendarum fast immer völlig rein. Aber wenn sich Schriftsteller
des Stils bemächtigen, treten vielfach Abweichungen oder Mischungen
ein, um neue raffiniertere, komplizierte Wirkungen zu erzielen.«11
More technical perhaps is the phrase »Sitz im Volksleben«: »Wer also
eine antike Gattung verstehen will, hat zunächst zu fragen, wo sie
ihren Sitz im Volksleben habe. . . ,«12. In the same year he comes
to write elsewhere: »Jede alte literarische Gattung hat ursprünglich
ihren Sitz im Volksleben Israels an ganz bestimmter Stelle.«13 By
1909, the terminology is crystalized: »Eben deshalb, weil diese ältesten
Gattungen ursprünglich nicht auf dem Papier, sondern im Leben be-
standen haben, sind auch die ursprünglichen Einheiten so kurz gewe-
sen, entsprechend der geringen Aufnahmefähigkeit des Hörers und be-
sonders jener antiken Hörer. Aus dem von uns angedeuteten >Sitz im
Lebern erklärt es sich ferner, daß diese ältesten Gattungen ganz reinen
Stil haben: sie sind für eine bestimmte Situation berechnet und ent-
sprechen ihr durchaus.«14 This crucial passage contains a large num-
ber of problematic assumptions. Can a contrast between writing and
»life« be effectively maintained ? Is it true that simple literature is äs
a rule prior to sophisticated (oral or written) production? Do the
»oldest«, practical genres have an »altogether pure style« ? Are situa-
tions in primitive life clearly demarcated, so that there is only one
basic circumstance f or each genre ? These questions probably need to
be answered in the negative; H. Gunkel allowed himself to go beyond
available evidence15.
In his later years, H. Gunkel presented repeatedly a definition of
genre äs a complex constituted by definite thoughts and moods, speci-
fic linguistic forms, and a Sitz im Leben16. Such a formulation is ex-
11
Die israelitische Literatur 56 (not mentioned by W. Klatt op. cit. 127).
12
Ibid. 55.
13
Reprinted in: Reden und Aufsätze, 1913, 33 (similarly, 35).
" RGG, I 1909, 1193.
15
E. g., the relative primacy of simple and sophisticated literature was extensively
discussed during the nineteenth Century. H. Ewald was convinced that the populär
song had »sunki from higher art (Die Dichter des Alten Bundes, 18662, 33). Accor-
ding to A. Ludwig, no one should assert »nowadays« that the older is at the same
time the simpler (Der Veda, 1876). See, further, below.
16
ZS 2 (1923/24), 146; ZAW 42 (1924), 182f.; Die israelitische Literatur, 19252, 109;
Einleitung in die Psalmen 22.

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160 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

tremely helpful if treated äs a heuristic principle, generating open

questions about the three aspects of types of expression. However,
the Statements implied that genres, äs defined, really existed (although
not in written form) and led to attempts to reconstruct their pure state,
together with a precise original Situation.

The Background
Despite considerable effort, the present writer has been unable
to find an author prior to H. Gunkel who presented the rigid assump-
tions which he associated with Sitz im Leben. The broader notion of
Situation, however, was current and even dominant in a large number
of disciplines. This circumstance shows that it is wise to cultivate closc
contacts with other disciplines both äs a source of Stimulation and äs
a control. It is well known that great artists and great scholars alike
operate on the basis of a rieh background17.
The recognition that various genres, including populär ones, are
reflected in biblical literature is an old one, even though at certain
periods it was given prominent stress. Following observations by R.
Lowth and more recent ones (with reference to ceremonies in the mo-
dern Near East) by J. G. Wetzstein, K. Budde analyzed for certain
genres their natural Situation in »life«18 and their adaptations in other
contexts (since 1882). K. Budde held that the significant contribution
of J. G. Wetzstein lay in his being able to show for the songs in Cantic-
les »eine bestimmte, feste Stelle in dem Leben und in den Sitten des
Volkes«19. Secondary employments of genres he called »contrafacta«20,
drawing on a term used for German hymns modeled after secular
poems (K. Budde was well acquainted with, and even active in, the
field of Germanics). After Publishing a number of relevant studies,
which immediately became widely known, he presented in 1902 a brief
general survey of various kinds of Hebrew folk poetry in relation to
aspects of »family life«, »the life of the Community«, »religious life«,
and »national life«21. H. Gunkel (1895) also cited R. Lowth and expres-
sed decisive methodological indebtedness to A. Jülicher's study of the
»Stilgattungen« of the parable and allegory; in 1906, he gave appropri-
17
The whole matter might require less argument than it is given here if W. Klatt
(op. cit. 105. 112) had not asserted the independence of H. Gunkel in Opposition to
what W. Baumgartner reports H. Gunkel himself to have said.
18
ZDPV 6 (1883), 183: »ein Stück altisraelitischen Lebens ... im wirklichen Leben«
(for the dirge); on R. Lowth and J. G. Wetzstein, ZAW 2 (1882), 3. 25.
19
Die fünf Megillot, 1898, xvii.
20
Preußische Jahrbücher 77 (1893), 482; etc. (For further bibliography, see: Karl
Buddes Schrifttum, 1930.)
21
Hastings Dictionary of the Bible, IV 1902, lOf.

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 161

ate credit to K. Budde, äs well äs to other predecessors in facets of

genre studies22.
A major Stimulus to the concept of Situation came from investi-
gations of ancient Near Eastern literature. For instance, A. Jeremias
proposed for certain works a cultic »Situation«, although apparently of
an individual sort; genres, styles, and occasions — separately or to-
gether — were noted by various scholars23. Especially important was
the work of H. Gunkel's friend H. Zimmern, who was his colleague at
Halle and contributed to Schöpfung and Chaos. H. Zimmern's disser-
tation (1885) established the kinds of occasions on which Babylonian
»penitential« prayers could be used, employing two kinds of evidence:
(1) express cultic directions (äs noted also by other Assyriologists),
and (2) narrative reports mentioning the use of a given type of psalm
in connection with certain circumstances24. H. Gunkel later listed,
among evidences for reconstructing situations, »notices in historical
books or in laws«25. In 1889, H. Zimmern stressed the similarity in
>form« between Mesopotamian hymns and the praise of Yahweh in the
Üld Testament26. The matter is not pursued in detail, but he could
easily have referred in part to participial style (which had appeared
in previously published psalms) and thereby have stimulated H. Gun-
kel's concern with that style. In terminology, H. Zimmern and H.
Gimkel apparently influenced each other; in 1905, H. Zimmern related
Babylonian hymns and prayers to the »Situation, der sie entstammen«,
specifically to magical use in which most of them have »ihren ursprüng-
lichen Sitz« and generally to cultic processes »bei allerlei wichtigen Ak-
ten des öffentlichen und privaten Lebens«27. H. Zimmern viewed most
-- Schöpfung und Chaos 98 (R. Lowth). 74 (A. Jülicher, quite emphatically); Die israe-
litische Literatur, 1906, 101 (K. Budde and others); Reden und Aufsätze 32 (on
K. Budde's influence). The work of E. Reuß is listed prominently in the introduction
to Genesis (1901), i. Clearly these figures are not made »erst im Nachherein zu Vor-
gängern« (pace W. Klatt op. cit. 112).
23
A. Jeremias, Die babylonisch-assyrischen Vorstellungen vom Leben nach dem Tode,
1887, 7; Izdubar Nimrod, 1891, 3 (= W. H. Röscher, Ausführliches Lexikon der grie-
chischen und römischen Mythologie, II 1890—97, 775 — the lexicon was used heavily
by H. Gunkel). For parallels, cf. L. King, Babylonian Magic and Sorcery, 1896,
xxiif. (for the structure and use of Babylonian psalms); H. Winckler, Himmels- und
Weltbild der Babylonier, 1901, 31. 53 (»Osterfest« — cf. H. Gunkel, Genesis, 1901,
xxxi: »Osterhymnus«); and works by a number of other scholars in the last decades
of the nineteenth Century.
24
Babylonische Bußpsalmen, 1885, 2.
25 Die Psalmen, RGG, IV 1913, 1931.
26
Die Assyriologie als Hülfswissenschaft für das Studium des Alten Testaments und des
klassischen Altertums, 1889, 19.
27
Babylonische Hymnen und Gebete, 1905, 4. 7. 13. »Sitz« here already refers to an
active location, äs in H. Gunkel not until the 1906 publication.

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162 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

of the Babylonian psalms äs connected with their normal cultic use and
context. Similarly S. Mowinckel, influenced by H. Zimmern28, came to
hold to an active cultic character of biblical psalms, more so than did
H. Gunkel.
The idea that f or artistic purposes genres were adapted from usage
in populär situations was common in Standard works on Greco-Roman
literature29. A. Couat (1882) described Alexandrian poetry äs based
on genres which in their classical period had served a social function,
observing that the classical poet might sacrifice originality to the
conventions of tradition in order to meet public needs30. R. Reitzen-
stein's equally well-known study Epigramm und Skolion (1893) related
some Alexandrian genres in detail to their original social context
from which they had deviated considerably. R. Hirzel, one of the first
to devote an entire work to the history of a single genre (1895, stating
that such an approach then lay »so to say in the air«), began briefly
with the oral forms of »real life«31. The great U. von Wilamowitz-Moel-
lendorff, with whom H. Gunkel had personal connections in Berlin32,
favored individuality, but recognized the role of genres and argued in
a famous 1900 article that E. Norden has paid insufficient attention
to their significance33. U. von Wilamowitz had characterized Attic
drama in terms of its connection with a »bestimmte Gelegenheit«,
i. e., the Dionysus festival34. In his 1905 survey of Greek literature
(in the same series to which H. Gunkel contributed), he pointed out that
the orator sought to serve »life« and that the rhetorician Menander
(third Century C. E.) related speech to occasions, with an Illustration
from the practice of Jews to gather in Jerusalem for praise35. More
28
Psalmenstudien, II 1922, xi.
29
On original genres, with their occasions and artistic adaptations, e. g.: W. Y. Seilars,
The Roman Poets of the Republic, 18898 (cf. E. Norden in: Einleitung in die Alter-
tumswissenschaft, 1910, 560); W. Christ, Geschichte der griechischen Litteratur,
1888, 18902, 18988; P. Stengel, Die griechischen Sakralaltertümer, 1890, 18982.
80
La poosie Alexandrine sous les trois premiers Ptolemoes 324—222, 1882, 515f.
81
Der Dialog, I 1895, vi. 26. Aesthetic »Literaturgeschichte« äs a history of genres was
promoted by A. Boeckh, Encyklopädie und Methodologie der philologischen Wissen-
schaften, 1877, 130. 144. 156. 250. 527 f. — apparently H. Gunkel's model. (Also H.
Gunkel's rejection of dilettante exclamations, RGG, I 1909, 1191, is very much like
A. Boeckh's, 156.)
82
U. von Wilamowitz repeatedly aided younger scholars with suggestions; such direct
contributions are cited by H. Gunkel, Das Vierte Buch Esra (above, note 7), 334.
355. 361. 364. 369. 372. 378.
83
Hermes 35 (1900), 1—52. W. Klatt (op. cit. 112) is correct in seeing that H. Gunkel
could not well have received his method from E. Norden.
84
Euripides Herakles, III 18952, l (cf. I, 108).
85
Kultur der Gegenwart, I/VIII 1905, 150f. The bibliography of this survey consists
largely of genre studies (on »Topik«, cf. 225).

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 163

relevantly perhaps, O. Gruppe discussed in some detail cultic hymns and

myths and their relation to productions which he believed to have a
more strictly intellectual or aesthetic character (Kunsthymnen, Kunst-
mythen) in Greece and the East; H. Gunkel cited the work in 1901.
On the mutual relations between populär and educated poetry, 0.
Gruppe wrote: »Das Volk giebt der Kunstpoesie Form und empfängt
dafür Geist. Die Dichtung der Gebildeten gleicht einer Prägeanstalt,
in der die im Volke cursirende Münze immer neu geschlagen wird.«36
He believed that religious poems can be connected secondarily with
their ceremonial context, after having been free from such a connec-
tion; such a theme re-emerges in H. Gunkel's view that hymns can
return to the cult from which they (by style) originated37. Nineteenth-
century research had shown that literature, especially in its better
forms, is produced by creative individuals; O. Gruppe and H. Gunkel
both knew that38.
It is easy to prove that H. Gunkel was familiär with the field of
Germanics at an early stage of his career, orally at the very least.
As a student in Göttingen (1881) he attended lectures on German histo-
rical grammar by W. Müller; in Halle (during the early 1890's), the
Germanic scholar O. Bremer was a member of his friendship circle39.
In an earlier classic, W.Müller had referred to Germanic cult practices;
his theory of myth and legend undoubtedly made an impact on H.
Gunkel's Genesis40. At the end of the nineteenth Century the most out-
standing history of early German literature was a work by R. Koegel,
known for its attempt to reconstruct a picture of ancient German
poetry and life, with major attention to genres. Its procedure is stated
äs foÜows: »Wer in das Wesen unserer ältesten Dichtung eindringen
will, muß sich ihren Zusammenhang mit den altheidnischen Festfeiern,
mit den Opferreigen und Umzügen vor Auge halten«41; with this one
36
Op. cit. (above, note 4) 67. H. Gunkel cited the work in Genesis, 1901, 91.
37
O. Gruppe op. cit. 646; H. Gunkel, RGG, IV 1913, 1942.
38
O. Gruppe op. cit. 64: »das Volk als solches kann nicht dichten«; W. Christ op. cit.
18983, 23: »das ganze Volk zwar dichtet nicht«; H. Gunkel, RGG, I 1909, 1193:
»ein Volk dichtet nicht«. For a survey of the question, see F. Gummere, Old English
Ballads, 1894, xxvii—Ix.
39
W. Klatt op. cit. 16. 23.
40
H. Gunkel's Interpretation of sagas Stands close to the scholarly tradition of K. O.
Müller, H. D. Müller, and W. Müller; he even employs the same example of an etymo-
logical aetiology (Genesis, 1901, xiii; cf. W. Müller, Zur Mythologie der griechischen
und deutschen Heldensage, 1889, 4).
41
Geschichte der deutschen Litteratur, 1894, 6. R. Koegel and H. Gunkel used the word
»Kranz« to designate a circle of poems or stories which presuppose each other although
they are individually artistic wholes (R. Koegel op. cit. 133f.; H. Gunkel, Genesis,
1901, xxf. xxvi. 146f. 266. 357).

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164 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

may compare H. Gunkel's 1901 formulation quoted above, similar

in aim and even in wording. Certainly, the study represents a poten-
tial antecedent. A shorter version of R. Koegel's study had appeared
äs part of the Grundriß der germanischen Philologie, edited by H. Paul,
the Standard series in the field. In the methodological portion of the
Grundriß, H. Paul wrote about »Vorgängen, die sich mit einer gewissen
Regelmäßigkeit zu bestimmten Zeiten und auf bestimmte Anlässe hin
wiederholen« and observed that »Schöpfung und Vortrag der Poesie
ist vielfach an bestimmte Gelegenheit gebunden, an den Kultus, an
die Feste und Spiele des Volkes, die Beredsamkeit entspringt dem
öffentlichen religiösen, politischen, rechtlichen Leben«, while great
writers have more or less close »Beziehung zum Leben«42. H. Paul and
R. Koegel gave credit to L. Uhland, at once a major poet and a scho-
lar then widely regarded äs superior to the Grimm brothers in sophisti-
cation43. H. Gunkel's similarity to L. Uhland's analysis of genres,
with a »home« or »Anlaß im Volksleben«, is so close that a direct depen-
dence, at least in H. Gunkel's later writings, is virtually certain44.
It is possible that the image of story telling during a winter evening
also derives from L. Uhland, but this may be a more widespread
motif45. Very populär in Germanic studies, since the end of the eigh-
teenth Century, was the theme of a split between populär (»living«)
and intellectual literature, which became crucial for H. Gunkel in
1906. The split was generally lamented, since it was believed that
great art requires the interaction between these two strata46.
42
I 1891, 154. 216f. 217 (again, 190l2, 225; cf. above, note 4). The phrase »bestimmte
Gelegenheit« was used by a number of writers for a repeatable occasion (including
H. Gunkel, RGG, IV 1913, 1941).
43
L. Uhland's profound impact made itself feit in part through his younger friend
W. Wackernagel (cf. Protestantische Monatsblätter 21, 1863, 3) prior to the posthu-
mous publication of some of L. Uhland's best work. The influence extended also to
W. Scherer, Geschichte der deutschen Litteratur, 18874, 7—16, virtually a model
of H. Gunkel, Die israelitische Literatur, 1906, 65f. 60—66.
44
See: The Study of Forms, 51 f. (items from the Abhandlung there cited appeared in
L. Uhlands Schriften zur Geschichte der Dichtung und Sage, III 1866, 10. 12. 181.
383). H. Gunkel's Der Prophet Esra, 1900, 95, quotes from a poem by L. Uhland;
his Märchen im Alten Testament, 1917, 65, refers to L. Uhlands Schriften I, 289.
Other similarities include the themes of a flowering and decline of genres and of
common style (Schriften 1,12. 390); no direct dependence can be proved from these,
however.
45
H. Gunkel, 1901 (quoted above), äs in L. Uhlands Schriften I, 352.
46
The list of writers on this subject includes J. Herder, J. and W. Grimm, Fr. Schlegel,
L. Uhland, A. Vilmar (many editions), H. Paul (op. cit. I 1891, 224; 190l2, 233), E.
Elster, K. Bücher, A. Dieterich (Hessische Blätter für Volkskunde, 1902,172). Especi-
ally since A. Vilmar, the words »Riß« and »Gebildete« are used almost monotonously,
äs by H. Gunkel, Die israelitische Literatur, 65.

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 165

H. Gunkel's interests ranged beyond the Near East and Europe

also to India and East Asia. As far äs one can determine, this area was
opened to him later than the others, but comparisons between Near
Eastern and Indian hymns were not uncommon in the last decades of
the nineteenth Century. Old Indian traditions are particularly amenable
to form criticism, since they contain not only literary materials but
also extensive directions on the carrying out of various private and
public procedures. It was thus natural that scholars in this field would
relate the verbal and active aspects of culture to each other. E. g.,
O. Gruppe, in the work known to H. Gunkel, presented a discussion of
Brahman hymns and their cultic or more purely literary use47. H.
Oldenberg dealt in detail with Vedic rites for »Anlässe des öffentlichen
Lebens« or for »Anlässe des Familienlebens«, together with the basic
elements of their literary expression, although insisting the latter were
not always connected with ritual48. M. Bloomfield employed the word
»Situation« for the recurring context of populär religious expressions49,
a usage otherwise unattested before 1901. It is possible that H. Gun-
kel encountered his work in preparation for the genre studies of psalms,
soon to appear. It is also possible, of course, that a coincidence has
occurred or that an intermediate (oral ?) vehicle served äs linkage.
H. Gunkel's indebtedness to several disciplines is incontrover-
table, even though the precise lines of connection cannot always
be drawn for him any more than that would be possible for another
scholar. Such an observation is important for an appropriate under-
standing of history. One can see again that significant phenomena —
presumably that includes the Bible — do not arise on their own,
but out of a multiplicity of contacts. H. Gunkel's heritage can be
continued only by creative interaction with life and scholarship äs a
whole — in line with his expressed views50 and with his actual expe-
rience.
Reassessment
The value of a focus on Situation or Sitz im Leben lies in its recog-
nizing the relation of literature to human life. Some of H. Gunkel's
47
Op. cit. 283—314.
48
Die Religion des Veda, 1894 (cited by H. Gunkel, Ausgewählte Psalmen, 191l3,
328); Die Literatur des alten Indiens, 1903 (cited in: Die israelitische Literatur,
1906, 102).
49
JAOS 15 (1893), xxxix. xlv (another part of this Journal volume was used by H. Gun-
kel and H. Zimmern, Schöpfung und Chaos, 25, 401); The Atharvaveda (a part of
the Grundriß der Indo-Arischen Philologie), 1899, 57.
50
He denied in history »schlechthin Neues«, saw everything äs both fruit and seed, and
stressed that a feature of the religio-historical school was its contact with discipli-
nes other than theology (Deutsche Literaturzeitung 25, 1904, 1102. 1109).

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166 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

views on the nature of this relationship are untenable. It is necessary

to cleanse the concept of Situation of such views, and at the same time
to enrich that concept, in order to rescue and deepen the genuine in-
sight that literature must be seen in its connection with life in order to
be understood. Fortunately, a new scholarly movement emerging a
little over a decade ago has explored the sociology of language in such
a way that it can at least contribute to a reconceptualization. Early
antecedents of this movement already had an (indirect) impact on
H. Gunkel, although H. Gunkel's connection with sociology was rela-
tively weak51. The following observations are not entirely dependent
upon, yet are to some extent aided by, such recent research, äs an
attempt is made to reach an over-all theory.
One can distinguish between several kinds of »Situation«. The divi-
ding lines between them are not altogether sharp — äs is true for most
differentiations — but they do represent fairly different aspects under
which a literary work or genre can be viewed. For individual utteran-
ces, one can note the physical circumstances, the mental considera-
tions of the Speaker and hearer, and the literary context. Situation
theory in linguistics has usually dealt with such individual phenome-
na or with repeated contexts for specific items (such äs words)52. The
three most important aspects of Situation for a genre (our main concern
here) are: the human process, the conventional setting, and the evolu-
tionary condition.
»Human process«, »human Situation«, or »life Situation«, refers to
the context äs understood or interpreted by a human being53. It is
not something purely external. Examples include the death of a friend,
a threat to one's own life, the birth of one's child, marriage, sickness
or loss of Status, achievement of any sort, sexual interest, artistic
pleasure, religious or idealistic exaltation, victory for one's group,
small-scale or large-scale conflict, instruction, alienation, etc. One
can call these processes »socio-psychological«, since they involve social
and psychological aspects simultaneously. The basic processes tend to
be relatively universal, so that the genres in which they are expressed
61
The prime Stimuli of morerecent studies appear to be B. Malinowski, J. Firth, K.
Pike, and K. Burke; see The Study of Forms 16. 36f., on their role and background.
52
For surveys, see: G. Mounin, Les Temps Modernes 22 (1966), 1066—1069; J. Sawyer
op.cit. (above, note 2); R. Lapointe, Biblica 52 (1971), 469—487; W. Raible in: U.
Gerber and E. Güttgemanns, eds., »Linguistische« Theologie, 1972, 9—12; add:
C. Ogden and I. Richards, The Meaning of Meaning, 19468.
53
One may compare E. Kahler's »Lebenssituation«, quoted by M. Weiss, Biblica 42
(1961), 257; views of »Situation« surveyed by K.Logstrup, RGG, VI 19628, 95—97,
and by H. Knuth, Zur Auslegungsgeschichte von Psalm 6, 1971, 369—376 (held to
be in line with H. Gunkel 353—355. 377); and the »context« or »universe of dis-
course« of W. Urban, Language and Reality, 1939, 203.

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 167

are also quite widespread, such äs love poetry, mourning rites, praise,
and commands54.
Every society shapes the expression and setting of basic human
processes in a conventionalized manner. Thus, for instance, in conneo
tion with a death, both verbal behavior and other actions are closely
determined by tradition. In their details such traditions are to a grea-
ter or lesser degree arbitrary. Linguistic aspects are almost entirely
arbitrary, äs is generally recognized. The physical settings can vary
considerably from one culture to another without a major difference
in meaning or effect. In other words, the exact nature of the conven-
tions, or »Symbols«, often does not matter. What is important is the
human process they embody. The study of the conventions — whether
of the genre itself or of the setting — should ordinarily not be an end
in itself, but a step toward an insight into the Operation of life.
One may restate the matter thus: the basic genres expressing hu-
man processes (such äs mourning) are given concrete shape in genre
variants (e. g., the conventional form in Hebrew at a given time and
place), while the human Situation (death and burial) is handled in
conventional settings (the exact circumstances of burial). Now it is
important to recognize that while basic processes and situations inhe-
rently belong together, genre variants are not necessarily matched
precisely with specific settings and practices55. There may be alterna-
tives either in speech or in nonverbal actions, or in both, for a given
fundamental problem (e. g., sickness), so that a number of combina-
tions are possible56. One cannot make any a priori assumptions in this
matter. In a given society some occasions are structured more precisely
than are others; a given genre is assigned by some societies more
sharply to defined occasions than by other societies57. Indeed, it is
misleading to say that a concrete genre emerges from a specific setting.
Rather, a genre variant grows out of an earlier form in an antecedent
54
As part of bis situational theory, J. Firth called these genres »types of linguistic
function« (Papers in Linguistics 1934—1951, 1957, 31).
55
Earlier, M. Buss, The Prophetic Word of Hosea, 1969, 1. 4f. Similarly, D. Hymes,
Foundations in Sociolinguistics, 1974, 52. 54 (adapted from 1964), and R. Knierim,
Interpretation 27 (1973), 441. 446.
56
E. g.: C. Frake in: W. Goodenough, ed., Explorations in Cultural Anthropology,
1964, 125; A. Bundes, Southern Folklore Quarterly 28 (1964), 261. 264.
57
Ruth Finnegan, Limba Stories and Story-Telling, 1967, reports: »Limba stories about
[the high god] Kanu are not told on prescribed occasions« (36); his »name is often
to be heard on Limba lips, especially in situations of unexpected joy or misfortune«
(19 — note the connection with the human Situation). She notes that among the
Limba narrative-types and occasions do not correlate (30). Among the Makah, in
contrast, populär tales were told only at bedtime with children present, usually in
the winter (R. Miller, Journal of American Folklore 65, 1952, 29).

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168 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

social organization. The current organization of activity may contri-

bute to the shape of a genre, but often the fit is only a rough one.
Especially important is the fact that styles and content of
speaking are not determined directly by the external setting, but by
the interplay of the roles of participants58. Roles form a dynamic set
of relations, influenced in part by the setting, yet more immediately
involved in the social process. Since individuals play more than one
role and have multiple opportunities, speech can change its character
without a change in circumstances59. Thus it has been suggested that
speech patterns be »described in terms of nonobservable factors which
enable the analyst not so much to predict äs to understand«60. A bibli-
cal scholar's task of deducing the life structure of a text on the basis
of internal evidence is then not altogether different from that of the
contemporary observer of a conversation. Fortunately it is often
possible to solve the more significant questions regarding the problem
of a text, even though the more incidental details of context may
remain obscure.
It is easy to apply this understanding to biblicalliterature. A psalm
of lament gives a clear picture of the human Situation — some one suf-
fers »unjustly«, i. e., for reasons other than perceived guilt — but yields
only a very unclear image of the settings in which it may be used.
In all probability the lament style was applied to a wide ränge of
concrete problems and accompanied by different steps toward a solu-
tion61. So-called »wisdom« was not the sole possession of a professional
class62, any more than modern instruction is limited to schools (al-
though this activity is the latter's specialty). Conflict and its settle-
ment employed Standard forms which were by no means restricted
to court situations. It is probably inappropriate to say that psalms
and prophecy »borrowed« legal phraseology, for there is ample evidence
that in ancient Israel the judicial realm had not yet become äs specia-
lized äs it has in the modern legal System63. Simüarly, »hymnic« parti-
58
E. g., E. Arewa and A. Dundes show the relation of the genre of proverbs to »Situation«
in the sense of role patterns involving age (American Anthropologist 66, 6/2, 1964,
79. 81).
69
Ethel Albert and J. Blom & J. Gumperz in: J. Gumperz & D. Hymes, eds., Directions
in Sociolinguistics, 1972, 83 f. 105. 424—432; R. Fowler, Understanding Language,
1974, 232.
60
J. Pride in: J. Lyons, ed., New Horizons in Linguistics, 1970, 293, with reference to
other supporting data.
61
H. Gese, ZTK 65 (1968), 12, relates them partly to the »Situation der Not«. Cf. H.
Gunkel, Einleitung in die Psalmen, 181 (and, ed. J. Begrich, 284).
62
Cf. R. N. Whybray, The Intellectual Tradition in the Old Testament, 1974 (possi-
bly one-sided in the other direction).
63
See: M. J. Buss, Hosea, 76f. (n. 99). 91 f. 95. 115.

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 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique 169

ciples were used in many contexts — within laments, in wisdom de-

scriptions, and for royal and divine self-presentations — so that one
cannot assign them a particular setting, but must see them äs embody-
ing the human Operation of descriptive praise64. On the other band,
participles with a derogatory content naturally fulfilled the function
of blame or denunciation, äs they did when preceded by hoy, »o!«65.
Many theories concerning the movement of a genre or style have
unnecessarily assumed that the usage was »originally« highly circum-
scribed.
Since H. Gunkel held an excessively compartmentalized view of
Israelite society — apparently influenced by his experience of the mo-
dern specialized social System66 — he had to resort frequently to the
notion of borrowings, imitations, or spiritualized versions, when cer-
tain features or complexes were found outside of the context which he
assigned to them äs basic. Although one may differ with him in relation
to particular applications, the principle that secondary extensions of
usages occur is a sound one. Extensions can vary from the fairly natu-
ral to the deliberately striking or humorous67. Metaphorical extensions
are effective only äs long äs the more normal use remains in effect;
such synchronic adaptations must be clearly distinguished from changes
in a genre. A powerful example of stylistic adaptation is the well-known
»song of the vineyard« (Isa 5 i- ), which derives its aesthetic subtlety
and its effectiveness from operating simultaneously on three interact-
ing levels: about a vineyard, about a beloved, and about Israel
(Israel being designated both under the image of the beloved and di-
rectly by that of the vineyard68).
64
Cf. F. Crüsemann, Studien zur Formgeschichte von Hymnus und Danklied in Israel,
1969, 83—154 (hypothecizing an original pure form), and literature there cited.
The participial praise style in other (such äs Greek) traditions was not connected
especially with festivals; festival praise tended to employ narration. (Cf. the Orphic
hymn in A. Dieterich, Abraxas, 1891,139; the work is cited in Schöpfung und Chaos,
294. 300.)
65
Hoy is a vocative or interjection, expressing emotion, including sorrow and anger;
the nature of the emotion is determined by the context.With derogatory participles
or images, it yields an insult or invective (cf. H. Gunkel, RGG, I 1909, 1192), äs do
equivalents in Arabic (T. Canaan, JPOS 15, 1935, 257, noted by W. Janzen, Mourning
Cry and Woe Oracle, 1972, 32; H. Schmidt and P. Kahle, Volkserzählungen aus Pa-
lästina, I 1918, 72 [text 30, section 12]), and Egyptian (H. Grapow, Wie die alten
Ägypter sich anredeten, I9602, 6f. 9. 34. 94), etc. — not derived from lament.
66
E. g., Reden und Aufsätze 33 (»wie noch heute«).
67
Similarly, G. Fohrer et al. op. cit. 96f. For analyses, cf. J. Fishman in: J. Gumperz &
D. Hymes op. cit. 450, and, at length, E. Goffman, Frame Analysis, 1974 (e. g.,
560).
68
For certain aspects, see W. Schottroff, ZAW 82 (1970), 68—91. Cf. W. Empson,
Seven Types of Ambiguity, 1955.

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170 Martin J. Buss, The Idea of Sitz im Leben — History and Critique

Changes in genres and in social organization are related in lesser

or greater degree to the development of technology and socioeconomic
conditions. An excellent example is furnished by the movement from
prophecy to apocalyptic, connected with profound changes in condi-
tions and organizations of power. Such shifts involve not merely the
conventions of a genre or setting, but the nature of experience and acti-
vity. Israelite spokesmen had no reason to appeal to the conscience of
foreign oppressive powers; during persecutions, encouragement for
perseverance was needed by their audience. On the whole, äs societies
become larger, one can observe an increase in functional specialization
and probably in conflict between groups. Future histories of Israelite
genres will need to devote attention to such macrohistorical factors69.
One of the strengths of biblical form criticism—not to be denied —
has been its attention to »settings«. Nevertheless, this concern has been
onesided and ill-controlled. Biblical studies need to deal more sharply
with process-oriented sociology and with issues of social development.
The concept of »Situation« is rieh and involves a number of dimensions70.
One may hope that social and psychological aspects will be further
explored — to open the human meaning of a text.

»Sitz im Leben« hieß für H. Gunkel der soziale Brauch, in dem eine Gattung ihre
Heimat hat; mit dem Wort »Situation« bezeichnete er sowohl Gattungs- als auch Einzel-
umstände. Doch war die Kenntnis von Gattungen in der alttestamentlichen Wissen-
schaft auch sonst bekannt und in der Assyriologie, Altertumswissenschaft, Germani-
stik und Indologie geläufig. In soziologischer Sicht kann man auf menschliche Beziehun-
gen, organisatorische Konventionen und historische Zustände verweisen; das »Ursprüng-
liche« ist eine kaum faßbare Größe.
H. Gunkel a de*fini le »Sitz im Leben« comme l'usage social dans lequel un genre
litte*raire ä son origine. Par le mot »Situation« il de*signe aussi bien des circonstances
isoloes que des 61£ments d'un genre littoraire. La notion de genre littoraire e*tait ogale-
ment connue par ailleurs dans la science votörotestamentaire et e"tait courante en assy-
riologie, dans les sciences de l'Antiquite*, en germanistique et en indologie. Du point de
vue sociologique on signalera aussi les relations humaines, les conventions organisation-
nelles, les conditions historiques. La notion »d'originel«, par contre, est une grandeur
difficilement saisissable.
69
Some hint in this direction is given by W. Richter, Exegese als Literaturwissenschaft,
1971, 147. E. Köhler has recently borrowed the term Sitz im Leben to describe the
relation of medieval love poetry to social class (in: Molanges Rita Lejeune, I 1970,
181).
70
D. Crystal and D. Davy, Investigating English Style, 1969, 60. 66—82, list eight
(largely situational) dimensions. Similarly also D. Knight in: Society of Biblical
Literature, 1974 Seminar Papers, I 1974, 105—125.

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