Old New Land [Paperback]

Theodor Herzl (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 30, 2000 | ISBN-10: 1558761608 | ISBN-13: 978-1558761605 | Edition: 1ST

**New Introduction by Jacques Kornberg** Old New Land forever altered the face of the Middle East. The book was a nineteenth-century utopian blueprint for a modern state of Israel. There were Jewish settlers in Palestine, and Zionist ideas had existed in Eastern Europe before Herzl, but Herzl made Zionism into a cultural and political movement acceptable to Western governments and intellectuals. His prophecy at the end of this book became reality: "If you will it, it is not a fable." The author, founder of the Zionist movement, considered this utopian story his best literary work: an expression of his art, with a political message.

His biographer, Amos Elon, placed Old New Land "in the mainstream of fin-de-siecle art. Its pursuit of arcadian bliss within a mystic community and its haunted preoccupation with dreams recall Gustav Mahler's music."

Editorial Reviews

Review

Altneuland (Old New Land) is one of the most remarkable books of the twentieth century. . . . Altneuland is a blueprint of the perfect Jewish state, a technocratic utopia, a socialist dream with all the advantages of capitalism, an idealistic colonial enterprise, a model of pure reason, a `light unto the nations.' It also helps to explain the extremism of some of those who rebel against the dominance of what is widely regarded as the arrogant West. "By the 1920s, in Herzl's tale, Jerusalem would be transformed into a thoroughly modern metropolis. . . . Arab and Jew would live happily together in the New Society, working in vast `co-operative syndicates.'. . . Herzl could not possibly have foreseen [the tensions to come], and yet the seeds of tragedy are already buried in this text, which was well meant, deeply idealistic, and in many ways typical of everything that people who feel so victimized by the West that they wish for its destruction fi nd most hateful. -- The New York Review of Books

"Altneuland (Old New Land) is one of the most remarkable books of the twentieth century. . . . Altneuland is a blueprint of the perfect Jewish state, a technocratic utopia, a socialist dream with all the advantages of capitalism, an idealistic colonial enterprise, a model of pure reason, a `light unto the nations.' It also helps to explain the extremism of some of those who rebel against the dominance of what is widely regarded as the arrogant West. "By the 1920s, in Herzl's tale, Jerusalem would be transformed into a thoroughly modern metropolis. . . . Arab and Jew would live happily together in the New Society, working in vast `co-operative syndicates.'. . . Herzl could not possibly have foreseen [the tensions to come], and yet the seeds of tragedy are already buried in this text, which was well meant, deeply idealistic, and in many ways typical of everything that people who feel so victimized by the West that they wish for its destruction find most hateful." --The New York Review of Books

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: German

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Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Markus Wiener Publishers; 1ST edition (December 30, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558761608
• ISBN-13: 978-1558761605
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,381,274 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comments from New York Review of Books, June 16, 2006

By 

history buff - See all my reviews

This review is from: Old New Land (Paperback)

"Altneuland (Old New Land) is one of the most remarkable books
of the twentieth century. . . . Altneuland is a blueprint of the perfect
Jewish state, a technocratic utopia, a socialist dream with all the
advantages of capitalism, an idealistic colonial enterprise, a model
of pure reason, a `light unto the nations.' It also helps to explain
the extremism of some of those who rebel against the dominance
of what is widely regarded as the arrogant West.
"By the 1920s, in Herzl's tale, Jerusalem would be transformed
into a thoroughly modern metropolis. . . . Arab and Jew would live
happily together in the New Society, working in vast `co-operative
syndicates.'. . . Herzl could not possibly have foreseen [the
tensions to come], and yet the seeds of tragedy are already buried
in this text, which was well meant, deeply idealistic, and in many
ways typical of everything that people who feel so victimized by
the West that they wish for its destruction fi nd most hateful."
--The New York Review of Books

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Typographical Errors Make Reading Difficult, February 15, 2010

By 

Barbie Prince - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Old New Land (Altneuland) (Paperback)

While the content of Old New Land (Altneuland) gives a fascinating look into Hertzl's ideals for the development of a Jewish homeland, the Filiquarian edition makes reading continuity very difficult due to the tremendous amount of typographical errors. Often the typo does not interfere with the content of the text - modem for modern, or random periods throughout - but there are cases where the characters' statements are incomprehensible due to the error. Filiquarian Publishing, LLC offers no contact information on their website or within the book.

5.0 out of 5 stars read!, May 30, 2011

By 

miko - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Old New Land (Paperback)

an amazing fantasy by a visionary who never lived to see (most of) this actually come true! how did he know? read the book, then read about the author, then check out this miracle.