"Larry Gonick explained the symbolism of the story in his Cartoon History of the Universe, revealing it to be a political parable; Solomon(the false mother) was the illegitimate king, and Adonijah's family(the true mother) were the rightful rulers. Solomon was willing to divide Israel(the baby) with civil war unless Adonijah's family ceded their claim to the throne."
"King Solomon does this with a baby, making it Older Than Feudalism. Note, however, that the original tale can actually be seen as a parable, as Solomon was at war with one of his brothers at the time; the baby was Israel, the sword was war, Solomon was the false mother and his brother was represented by the real mother. The message was "If you don't want me to split the kingdom, give it up." It worked."
Except while Adonijah was eldest living son, Solomon was the named heir, chosen by David and the priests -which carried more weight under Israel's customs. (See Jacob and Judah, just for starters.) So Solomon would be the true mother, the chosen heir selected to follow his father.
Edited by CandiComing back to where you started is not the same as never leaving. -Terry Pratchett
"Larry Gonick explained the symbolism of the story in his Cartoon History of the Universe, revealing it to be a political parable; Solomon(the false mother) was the illegitimate king, and Adonijah's family(the true mother) were the rightful rulers. Solomon was willing to divide Israel(the baby) with civil war unless Adonijah's family ceded their claim to the throne."
"King Solomon does this with a baby, making it Older Than Feudalism. Note, however, that the original tale can actually be seen as a parable, as Solomon was at war with one of his brothers at the time; the baby was Israel, the sword was war, Solomon was the false mother and his brother was represented by the real mother. The message was "If you don't want me to split the kingdom, give it up." It worked."
Except while Adonijah was eldest living son, Solomon was the named heir, chosen by David and the priests -which carried more weight under Israel's customs. (See Jacob and Judah, just for starters.) So Solomon would be the true mother, the chosen heir selected to follow his father.
Edited by Candi Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving. -Terry Pratchett