ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how Aseneth's post-transformational clothing intersects with the descriptions of the attire and appearance of the heroines of romance novels, a genre to which Joseph and Aseneth belongs. Aseneth's multiple clothing changes punctuate her transformation process until at last she is clothed in shining garments, ready to be presented to Joseph as his divinely chosen bride. Ross Kraemer argues that Aseneth transforms into a state of angelic being, parallel to other apocalyptic descriptions of angelic presence. Kraemer's observations regarding the texts of the biblical milieu are helpful in pinpointing precisely what Aseneth's transformation signifies in this context. Scholars who have focused on Aseneth's clothing changes have framed their analysis either in terms of biblical parallels or initiation rituals. Randall Chesnutt's contribution falls under the latter category but he ignores the final change of clothing into the robe since he sees it as "explicitly related to Aseneth's marriage to Joseph rather than her conversion".
