Includes bibliographical references and index.

"This book is a study of the poetics of Qurʼanic narrative, specifically the poetics of Surat al-Baqara, the second and longest sura in the Qurʼan. It argues that the sura, which has often been dismissed by Orientalist critics as a jumbled collection of unrelated material, can be appreciated as a coherent composition by approaching it as an oral text, that is, by paying attention to oral structural markers such as repetition."-- Provided by publisher.

Introduction -- 1. How to read the Qur'an holistically : understanding the rationale -- 2. Beginning at the beginning : Al-Fātiḥa as a prelude to Surat al-Baqara -- 3. Symmetry and a mounting dynamic : al-Baqara's skeletal outline -- 4. Thematic affirmation : al-Baqara's chiastic structure -- 5. "God as guide" : Surat al-Baqara's running theme in the divine self-revelatory reading -- 6. Placing humanity at the focal point : "responsibility" as the pedagogical running theme of Surat al-Baquara -- 7. Windows into the tradition : al-Biqā'ī and al-Ṭabāṭabā'ī on Surat al-Baqara -- Conclusion -- Appendix : Holistic approaches in Biblical studies.