1. Quoting preface, "When the book first appeared in early 2008, its reception was somewhat odd. The electronic media were intensely curious, and I was invited to take part in many television and radio programs."
2. "Journalists, too, turned their attention to my study, mostly in a favorable way. By contrast, representatives of the "authorized" body of historians fell on the book with academic fury, and excitable bloggers depicted me as an enemy of the people."
3. Another quote from the preface, "To understand this development, you have to take a clear-eyed look at Israel and forgo any bias for or against. I live in a rather strange society. As the closing chapter of the book shows—" ...
4. .."to the annoyance of many book reviewers—Israel cannot be described as a democratic state while it sees itself as the state of the "Jewish people," rather than as a body representing all the citizens within its recognized boundaries (not including the occupied territories)."
A further quote from the preface, "Aside from rioting minor errors, they chiefly complained that I had no business discussing Jewish historiography because my area of expertise is Western Europe." ...
..."Such criticism was not leveled against other general historians who tackled Jewish history, provided they did not deviate from the dominant thinking. "The Jewish people," "the ancestral land," "exile," "diaspora," "aliyah," "Eretz Israel," ..." ...
...""land of redemption" and so forth are key terms in all reconstructions within Israel of the national past, and the refusal to employ them is seen as heretical." ...
..."I was aware of all this before I began writing this book. I expected my attackers to claim that I lacked a proper knowledge of Jewish history, did not understand the historical uniqueness of the Jewish people, was blind to its biblical origin, and denied its eternal unity."
..."But it seemed to me that to spend my life at Tel Aviv University amid its vast collection of volumes and documents about Jewish history without taking time to read and tackle them would have been a betrayal of my profession." ...
..."Certainly it is pleasant, as a well-established professor, to travel to France and the United States to gather material about Western culture, enjoying the power and tranquility of academe. But as a historian..." ...
..."taking part in shaping the collective memory of the society I live in, I felt it was my duty to contribute directly to the most sensitive aspects of this task." ...
..."Admittedly, the disparity between what my research suggested about the history of the Jewish people and the way that history is commonly understood—not only within Israel but in the larger world—shocked me as much as it shocked my readers."
Another quote from the preface, "I should emphasize that I encountered scarcely any new findings—almost all such material had previously been uncovered by Zionist and Israeli historiographers. The difference is that some elements had not been given sufficient attention, .." ...
.."others were immediately swept under the historiographers' rug, and still others were "forgotten" because they did not fit the ideological needs of the evolving national identity.
What is so amazing is that much of the information cited in this book has always been known.." ..
What is so amazing is that much of the information cited in this book has always been known.." ..
.."inside the limited circles of professional research, but invariably got lost en route to the arena of public and educational memory. My task was to organize the historical information in a new way, to dust off the old documents and continually reexamine them." ...
.."The conclusions to which they led me created a radically different narrative from the one I had been taught in my youth.
Unfortunately, few of my colleagues—the teachers of history in Israel— feel it their duty to undertake the dangerous pedagogical mission .." ...
Unfortunately, few of my colleagues—the teachers of history in Israel— feel it their duty to undertake the dangerous pedagogical mission .." ...
.."of exposing conventional lies about the past. I could not have gone on living in Israel without writing this book. I don't think books can change the world, but when the world begins to change, .." ..
..."it searches for different books. I may be naive, but it is my hope that the present work will be one of them."
Shlomo Sand, Tel Aviv, 2009, from the preface of his book 'The Invention of the Jewish People'
versobooks.com/authors/709-sh…
Shlomo Sand, Tel Aviv, 2009, from the preface of his book 'The Invention of the Jewish People'
versobooks.com/authors/709-sh…
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