King David: a play
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
The story of King David which is taught to children in Sunday school is little more than a short fairy tale. It is a simple, straight forward story for the young, which offers excitement and an attractive young hero, whose bravery brought to him the Crown of Israel.
When David came out in his shepherd’s tunic and no apparent weapon, Goliath laughed at the small, young, unarmed challenger, but David picked up a stone, put it in his slingshot and threw it at Goliath. David’s aim was true, the stone hit Goliath’s forehead, and Goliath died on the spot. Then David picked up Goliath’s great sword and cut off the head of the Philistine’s warrior. The Philistines, horrified and frightened by the death of their strongest warrior, retreated, and the Jews attacked them as they ran from the battle and the Kingdom of the Jews was saved.”
After many other adventures during his youthful years, David then became King of Judah and then of Israel, which, over a forty year reign, became one of the greatest empires of his era.
However, the full story of the life of King David is a much more complex story than the Sunday School version–-if it is read with an open mind, it is a remarkably candid story of how a poor shepherd boy became King of Israel.
But then what kind of man was David? What one careful reading of the Hebrew Bible reveals is that David was an inveterate adulterer and that married women and widows were one of his great weaknesses.
This play deals with the real David and the relationships he made with the many women in his life. Though the history of the time is included, the main purpose of the play is to see into David’s thoughts and the thoughts of those women who were important in this life and his road to the throne.
This is done through poetic conversations David has with his young concubine, Shulamite and through Sonnets of his many wives.
"An absolutely new look at the familiar story of King David." Phil Blazer, Jewish News
"The Hebrew Bible's story of King David demands or at least invites modern interpretations of the text, and Fred Simmons' King David, a Play invites the thoughtful reader to a thoroughly enjoyable read." Ziony Zevit, University of Judaism, Loa Angeles, California
About the Author
Fred Simmons the author of Translation is on Advises the Editorial Board of Biblical Archeology Review, and for over twenty years has been the opening speaker at a unique annual program on Biblical Archeology at the Jewish University of America, in Los Angeles, where for over fifty years Mr. Simmons has practiced law. He is also the author of King David (Xlibris, 2003) and King David and his Concubine, a play in verse which was first produced in Los Angeles in 2005, with the noted actor, Ed Asner playing the aged King David. Mr. Simmons is also the author of Contemporary Urban Haiku, and several of his sonnets have been published in national magazines including Moment and Bible Review. Mr. Simmons was born in Los Angeles in 1928 and served as a naval officer during the Korean War, and is a graduate of UCLA and the UCLA School of Law, where he served on the Law Review. In his professional life, Mr. Simmons is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Taxation and has written extensively and lectured nationwide on his area of specialization. This novel "Translation" was inspired, Mr. Simmons said, by what is a troubling conundrum in Bible Studies: "How did The Book of Exodus, which some scholars consider a literary if not actually an historical masterpiece, come to be written as the world has known it for over two thousand years?" Mr. Simmons says, "I turn to writing fiction, poetry and plays to escape an uninspiring life of only working with the fine print and loopholes in the law, with which I have helped my client accumulate and retain their great wealth."