Contested Utopia
eBook - ePub

Contested Utopia

Jewish Dreams and Israeli Realities

  1. 328 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Contested Utopia

Jewish Dreams and Israeli Realities

Book details
Table of contents
Citations

About This Book

This first book to examine the Jewish state through the lens of Jewish utopian thought, from its biblical beginnings to modernity, offers a fresh perspective on the political, religious, and geopolitical life of Israel. As Marc J. Rosenstein argues, the Jewish people's collective memories, desires, hopes, and faith have converged to envision an ideal life in the Land of Israel—but, critically, the legacy is a kaleidoscope of conflicting (and sometimes overlapping) visions. And after three millennia of imagining utopia, it is almost impossible for Jews to respond to Israel's realities without being influenced—even unconsciously—by these images. Charting the place of utopian thought in Judaism, Rosenstein then illustrates, with original texts, diverse utopian visions of the Jewish state: Torah state (Yavetz), holy community (based on nostalgic memories of the medieval community), national-cultural home (Lewinsky), "normal" state (Herzl), socialist paradise (Syrkin), anarchy (Jabotinsky), and a polity defined by Israel's historic or divinely ordained borders. Analyzing how these disparate utopian visions collide in Israel's attempts to chart policy and practice regarding the Sabbath, social welfare, immigration, developing versus conserving the land, and the Israel-Diaspora relationship yields novel perspectives on contemporary flashpoints. His own utopian vision offers a further entryway for both Israelis and Diaspora Jews into more informed and nuanced conversations about the "Jewish state."

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Information

Publisher
The Jewish Publication Society
Year
2021
ISBN
9780827618633
Topic
History
Subtopic
Middle Eastern History
Index
History

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. Preface
  7. Acknowledgments
  8. Introduction
  9. How to Use This Book for Discussion
  10. Part 1
  11. 1. The Eternal Quest for Utopia
  12. 2. Paradise Lost, Remembered, and Promised
  13. 3. Utopia, Apocalypse, Messiah
  14. Part 2
  15. 4. A Torah Society
  16. 5. Holy Community
  17. 6. A National Home
  18. 7. Statehood and Power
  19. 8. Enlightenment and Normalization
  20. 9. Promised Borders
  21. 10. A Model of Social Justice
  22. Part 3
  23. 11. Visions in Collision
  24. 12. A Utopian Travel Blog
  25. Notes
  26. Bibliography
  27. Index
  28. About Marc J. Rosenstein