Saint Augustine's "Confessions"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that Augustine's autobiography "Confessions" presents his youth in a much more negative light than historical studies justify. The author points out that Augustine's idea was to represent himself in such a negative light that few of his readers could see themselves being greater sinners than Augustine; therefore, if God was willing to save Augustine despite all of his sins, he would surely be willing to save the reader if he or she was truly penitent. The paper states that Augustine addresses the problem of the apparent simplicity of Scripture in comparison to classical philosophy by arguing that Scripture is actually more complex and significant than the works of classical Greece and Rome. The paper includes many quotations.

From the Paper:

"Throughout the text Augustine invariably refers to "you" - the addressee of his work - as being God. In this text he focuses on the sins of his youth with such passionate fervor in condemning how he "ran wild with lust that was manifold and rank" that many readers would initially be taken aback. Augustine's concentration upon these lusts and crimes is such as to cause a critical reader to wonder at Augustine's objective here. After all, it is illogical - in a prayer to God - for Augustine to go into such great detail about his lusts and sins since God would, of course, be fully aware of them."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Augustine, Saint. Confessions. Trans. R.S. Pine-Coffin. London: Penguin, 1961.
• McCabe, Joseph. "The Conversion of Saint Augustine." International Journal of Ethics. 12.4: 450-459.
• Morrison, Karl. "Sounding Hermeneutics." Speculum. 73.3: 787-798.

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