The Historical Context and Realist Orientation of Erich Auerbach's Figural Interpretation (Figura)

In the 1930s, Erich Auerbach, exiled amid Nazi antisemitism and Aryan philology, revived the Latin-patristic concept of figura: a historical-grammatical method connecting Old Testament prophecy to New Testament fulfilment. In contrast to the prevailing pure philology of the period, figural interpretation embraced a teleological view of history, transforming Hebrew scripture from narrowly Jewish law into a cultural bridge linking everyday reality and transcendental redemption. This article argues that Auerbach’s figural interpretation constitute not merely a philological method but a cultural-political theory consciously devised to defend Judeo-Christian humanism and redefine Western literary realism. By tracing the concept’s patristic origins, examining its wartime deployment against Nazi ideology, and highlighting its role in Mimesis—where mixture of styles elevates ordinary experience into the primary measure of literary realism—the article demonstrates figural interpretation as a threefold intellectual strategy: sharpening historical insight, confronting cultural-political crises, and innovating literary criticism.