Zionists Anti Zionists and Post Zionists: Jewish Controversies in the 20th Century

Catalog description

In Jewish historical memory, Zionism is seen as the dominant Jewish national ideology throughout the 20th century. However, emerging in 1897, the Zionist movement aroused significant Jewish opposition. Many different Jewish ideologies developed, ranging from non-Zionism to anti-Zionism. This course will discuss the different arguments used by both Zionists and their opponents. We will look at the various options: Zionism, Diaspora Nationalism, Socialism and Communism, and Reform Judaism (before 1967), as well as Israeli Zionism and the opposition it aroused from Post-Zionists. Our focal question will be: why did Zionism evoke so much opposition among different Jewish groups.