לא ידע את יוסף – Ignorance or Selective Memory?

Introduction

While the closing chapters of Sefer Bereshit portray the close working relationship Yosef had with Paroh, Sefer Shemot opens by recording that after Yosef's death a new king arose in Egypt who did not know Yosef – "וַיָּקָם מֶלֶךְ חָדָשׁ עַל מִצְרָיִם אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָדַע אֶת יוֹסֵף"‎ (1:8). This verse has troubled many exegetes, as since Yosef had played such a prominent role in administering Egypt, how could it be that the new king had never heard of Yosef?¹