Editing Words of Mormon (section)

== Interpretation ==

=== Suggested purposes ===
Words of Mormon verses 12–18 have continuity with the first part of Mosiah; Jack M. Lyon and Kent R. Minson hypothesize it was originally dictated as part of a now missing portion of the [[Book of Mosiah]].<ref>See Jack M. Lyon and Kent R. Minson, "When Pages Collide: Dissecting the Words of Mormon," BYU Studies Quarterly 51, no. 4 (2012): 120–136</ref> Brant Gardner suggests that [[Joseph Smith]] wrote verses 12–18 as a summary or bridge back into the large plates and that these verses were not part of the original dictation.<ref>See Brant A. Gardner, "When Hypotheses Collide: Responding to Lyon and Minson's 'When Pages Collide'," Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 5 (2013): 105–119.</ref> In another perspective, religious studies scholar [[Grant Hardy]] states that that Mormon's mention of King Benjamin links the [[Book of Omni]] with the [[Book of Mosiah]].{{sfn|Hardy|2023|pp=213, 216}} 

Mormon narrates that he doesn't know why he is including the small plates with the large. Latter-day Saints believe that the inclusion serves as a replacement for the [[Lost 116 pages|116 pages]] that were lost during translation of the Book of Mormon.<ref>{{harvnb|Hardy|2023|p=215}}; {{harvnb|Thomas in Largey|2003|p=793}}</ref> Author Benjamin Keogh suggests that Mormon's explanation indicates that he views the inclusion of the small plates as an appendix to the larger record. Keogh further suggests that, for the small plates, Words of Mormon may serve a similar purpose as the title page of the Book of Mormon.{{sfn|Keogh|2018|pp=302-303}}

=== Style ===
[[Donald W. Parry]] broke up the Book of Mormon into its chiastic and other poetic patterns. In Words of Mormon he identified two instances of [[chiasmus]]: The first appears in verses 3-11 with an “ABcbcacababCDEFFEDCBabcA” pattern; the second is in verses 15-16 with an “abcabc” pattern.{{sfn|Parry|2007|pp=156-157}}

In an article about the Words of Mormon, Benjamin Keogh searches for meaning in Mormon's frequent use of "these." Mormon, he suggests, may be referencing prophets, holy men, or the plates themselves.{{sfn|Keogh|2018|pp=298-303}}

=== Suggested prejudice ===
Authors Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Hemming claim that throughout the narrative of the Book of Mormon the Nephites are prejudiced toward the Lamanites. They point out that in Words of Mormon the author calls the Lamanites the brethren of his people and avoids calling them his own brethren. This, Salleh and Hemming claim, is connected to Nephite prejudice.{{sfn|Salleh|Hemming|2020|p=152}}