A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two Peoples [Paperback]

Ilan Pappe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 31, 2006

Ilan Pappe's book traces the history of Palestine from the Ottomans in the nineteenth century, through the British Mandate, the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, and the subsequent wars and conflicts which have dominated this troubled region. The second edition of Pappe's book has been updated to include the dramatic events of the 1990s and the early twenty-first century. These years, which began with a sense of optimism, as the Oslo peace accord was being negotiated, culminated in the second intifada and the increase of militancy on both sides. Pappe explains the reasons for the failure of Oslo and the two-state solution, and reflects upon life thereafter as the Palestinians and Israelis battle it out under the shadow of the wall of separation. As in the first edition, it is the men, women and children of Palestine who are at the centre of Pappe's narrative.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Pappe's latest work will inspire ...' James Cullingham, Seneca College

'Along with the late Edward Said, Ilan Pappe is the most eloquent writer of Palestinian history. He is also one of the most scholarly ... here, for the first time, is a textbook on Palestine that narrates the real story as it happened - a non-Zionist version of Zionism ... To its credit, Cambridge University Press has published Pappe's pioneering and highly accessible work as an authoritative history.' New Statesman

'Ilan Pappe is a 'new historian' and this book is true to this label. It adopts a revisionist approach and it challenges the old ways in which the history of Palestine is written which makes it such an exciting read.' Ahron Bregman, King's College London, , International Affairs

' ... Ilan Pappe has written a book that is lucid and forthright. It is a unique contribution to the history of this troubled land, and all those concerned with developments in the Middle East will have to read ... Ilan Pappe's book is a valuable contribution to the historical research of Palestine as a general survey for those studying the subject. Designed for students and general readers, the book's new approach to the analysis of well-known events will be of interest to academics, journalists, foreign-policy makers, and to all those concerned with Palestine's complex past and its uncertain future. The inclusion of illustrations, maps, short biographies, a glossary of terms, a bibliography, and a reliable index further increases the usefulness of the book.' Quarterly Journal of African and Asian Studies

Book Description

A fascinating narrative of Palestinian history since the early 1800s, which has been updated to include the dramatic events of the 1990s and the early twenty-first century. These years, which began with a sense of optimism with the Oslo peace accord, culminated in the second intifad and the increase of militancy.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (July 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521683157
• ISBN-13: 978-0521683159
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #419,345 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Book, but not for beginners, April 17, 2008

By 

Michigan Rifleman "ndjamena" (Lansing, MI) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two Peoples (Paperback)

Professor Pappe has bravely attempted to pull together a history of Palestine that admits to bad faith on the part of the founders of Israel, and he finds some possibility for reconciliation between the Palestinians and the Israelis. Many people who think that they already know the truth will find much to dislike in this book. People who are willing to admit the humanity of the other side and the failings of their own will find a lot to like in this text.
However, for those looking for a basic introduction to the history of this area, this is NOT your book. Professor Pappe assumes a great deal of background knowledge on the reader's part. This is a challenging text. It shows, among many other things, a history of spontaneous cooperation between ordinary Jews and Moslems and how the leadership of the two groups undermined that cooperation for their own selfish ends. Professor Pappe gives us all some reason to hope that real history can provide a place for reconciliation.

42 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars History of Modern Palestine, April 1, 2007

By 

Margaret McCormack "The Geographer" (Chico, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two Peoples (Paperback)

This book corrects myths about the very, very early days of Zionism in Palestine, and continues to the current time. A must read for anyone with the slightest interest in how the Middle East is exploding, literally, every day. Peg McCormack

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars enjoyable read, thought provoking account, November 10, 2010

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Z. Cohen - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A History of Modern Palestine: One Land, Two Peoples (Paperback)

A History of Modern Palestine is a thoroughly enlightening, in-depth, unbiased analysis of the land that is known now as Israel and the Occupied Territories. It's important to note, before getting into the review, that in mainstream US and Israeli discourse, "unbiased" means falsely equivocating the behavior of two parties as if they share equal power and equal responsibility for the course of events in the region, which is simply not true. Pappe analyzes significant developments in the region in context, emphasizing the great chain of cause and effect that is often left out of discussions of the issue.

Pappe is an Israeli professor of history who offers a captivating attempt to unite both the Zionist and Palestinian nationalist narratives and reconcile them with what has actually happened. The writing is dense and academic, but highly readable. He occasionally goes off on tangents discussing various theories and models that professional historians use, applying them to the subject matter or examining how other historians have applied or misapplied them, but other than that, I found it highly accessible.
The book begins around 1850 in Ottoman Palestine, discussing the social structures of the people who lived there and setting the stage for the conflict that developed during the 20th century. The rise of Zionism in Europe is chronicled, and its ensuring slow migration of Jews to Palestine from the 1880s onward. Pappe examines how Palestinian social structure was initially affected by this immigration, as well as by integration with the European economy.

Significant time is devoted to the interwar period of the British Mandate, and how Zionism developed, centralized its civil and military institutions, and established goals for the future Jewish State during that time. Following the second world war, Pappe examines the UN establishent of Israel, including the ethnic cleansing, expulsion, and murder carried out by the Zionists against Palestinians in the months prior to the official birth of Israel in May of 1948.

The remainder of the book discusses the rise of Palestinian resistance and the increasingly brutal Israeli suppression, the 1967 war and subsequent occupation of the rest of ex-Mandate Palestine by the Israelis, the 1973 war, beginnings of the peace process in the 1970s, the Israeli invasions of Lebanon, the first Intifada, the rise of post Zionism in Israel, the Oslo accords, the rise of suicide terrorism, and the degeneration back into violence that has engulfed the region in the early 2000s.

Throughout the history, Pappe often pauses to discuss what the Zionist or Palestinian mythology has to say about a given issue, comparing it to how the other side perceived events and to what actually happened.

If you are a die hard Zionist, you probably won't like this book. I was raised Jewish and attended Hebrew night school for many years, and the Zionist narrative I was provided is starkly at odds with historical realities. I felt Pappe treated both sides fairly, pointing out shortcomings and never moralizing or judging. However, as I suggested at the beginning, there is no false equivocation. Israeli bloodshed and violence vastly exceeds Palestinian, and much of the Palestinian violence is a direct result of their economic, political, and military oppression and exploitation by a vastly more powerful Israeli society. He also documents the radicalization of Palestinian resistance, culminating in the rise of extremist movements like Hezbollah and Hamas, resulting from increasing Israeli oppression and failure to address the fundamental issues of the conflict. Throughout his treatment of the peace process, Pappe, documents how Israelis continued to undermine peace efforts with military intervention and illegal settlement expansion, slowly eroding the chances that a peaceful solution could occur.

Pappe also does not generalize each side. Much time is spent examining the various factions within Israeli and Palestinian society, investigating their origins, ideologies, and motivations. I was particularly struck with his dissection of the class structure of Israeli society and explanation of how poorly Arab jews and even Holocaust survivors were treated.

I noticed that some critical reviewers accuse Pappe of making up the Tantura massacre. He notes in the book that evidence for the massacre was recently uncovered by a student at his university who published a dissertation on the subject. Upon pressure from Israeli authorities, the student retracted his dissertation, and then later retracted the retraction. Pappe notes that a variety of Israeli professors and himself reviewed the work and the evidence and found it satisfactory.

Final thoughts: excellent read for anyone who wants an open minded, comprehensive, and systemic analysis of the events that brought Israel and Palestine to their present impasse, and the obstacles that their societies must come to terms with if the conflict is to be resolved.

Note: it seems most positive reviewers of books that are critical of Zionism or the state of Israel are attacked as anti semites. I just wanted to say that I come from a Jewish family and I have nothing for or against Jews or Arabs. Questioning the policies of the abstract state of Israel, or of my own country, do not mean I hate or wish ill upon it's people. I am in favor of all people on all sides of the conflict finding solutions that address fundamental causes, and living dignified, un-oppressed, unexploited lives.