Free Forms of Address and the Cases of Expressive Shift in Biblical Hebrew

This paper provides a descriptive analysis of address rules governing two nominal types of free forms of address (i.e., personal names and titles), which are used between two human beings in biblical Hebrew prose. Using the bi-dimensional power/solidarity model as a theoretical framework (Brown and Gilman 1960; Brown and Ford 1961), I attempt to show whether the usage of personal names and titles in biblical Hebrew exhibits unique rules and patterns or accords with their claim of “linguistic universal”—the linguistic form referring to an inferior is used mutually by intimate equals, while the form referring to a superior is used mutually by distant equals. After describing the general rules of address, I attempt to identify possible examples of what Brown and Gilman call “expressive shift,” that is, strategic violation of address rules to communicate the speaker’s temporary feelings and attitudes.