Fall 2014 HIST109B1 GELVIN
Syllabus with links
HISTORY 109B: HISTORY OF THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT, 1881 TO THE PRESENT
MWF 1111:50, Perloff 1102
Instructor: James L. Gelvin, 7377 Bunche Hall
gelvin@history.ucla.edu
Office Hours: MWF 89, M 122, and by appointment.
Palestine comprises the territory that lies between the Mediterranean Sea (on the west), Lebanon (in the north), the Gulf of Aqaba and the Sinai Peninsula (on the south) and the Jordan River (on the east) unless you are a Revisionist Zionist or a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, in which case Palestine includes presentday Jordan. Although it covers a small geographic area and includes a relatively small population (compare presentday Israel’s 7.5 million citizens with Egypt’s 80 million), the dispute between the two rival sets of nationalisms which claim the sole right to control all or parts of this territory has remained at the forefront of international attention for more than six decades. This course will examine the origins of the dispute between Israelis and their forebears, on the one hand, and Palestinians and theirs, on the other, from the midnineteenth century through the present day. Among the topics to be examined: the nature of empires and nations; the origins and diffusion of nationalism; the social history of Palestine up to Zionist colonization; the origins of Zionism and Palestinian nationalism; varieties of Zionism; Zionism and colonialism; seminal events and their consequent symbolic connotations (the 1936 “Great Revolt,” the 1948 nakba [disaster]); the construction of a national consensus in Israel; 1967 and its aftermath; the PLO and its Palestinian rivals; the first intifada; the redefinition of the conflict as a result of Oslo and GWOT (the global war on terrorism); the rise and fall of Israeli unilateralism; the effects of the Arab uprisings on the dispute and the rise of Palestinian unilateralism.
REQUIREMENTS:
1. “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” Woody Allen. Students are expected to attend class regularly, having read the readings assigned for that day.
2. Students will be required to write two six page papers. Each paper will count for 25% of the final grade.
3. There will be a final examination covering material from the entire course. The examination will count for 50% of the final grade.
4. The following books are required and can be purchased at the UCLA Bookstore:
James L. Gelvin, The Israel-Palestine Conflict: One Hundred Years of War (3rd Edition).
Jimmy Carter, The Blood of Abraham: Insights into the Middle East. (Any edition so long as it is used).
Alan Dershowitz, The Case for Israel. (Any edition so long as it is used).
NOTE ON BOOKS:
Be sure to get the 3rd edition of the Gelvin book. It has been updated and is significantly different from the 1st and 2nd editions.
Be sure to borrow or buy used copies of the Dershowitz and Carter books. I’ll be damned if either of those two poseurs get a dime in royalties from my course.
All other readings are online.
Note 1: This syllabus is subject to change. We live in tumultuous times.
Note 2: Life is short. I cannot respond to emails about assignments that should be raised in class.
Note 3: All written assignments must be submitted to Turnitin when you hand them in. If you don’t, I shall assume the worst and act accordingly.
Note 4: Questions about grades should be addressed to your reader. The reader is free to lower grades of any student they feel is playing the odds and therefore wasting her time. Getting into law school is your responsibility, not ours.
Note 5: Some of you might be under the impression that because I wrote the textbook, you can skip lectures and still get a good grade.That would be a mistake. A big mistake.
Note 6: Read Note 5 again.
Note 7: No auditors or visitors without the express permission of the instructor. Absolutely no exceptions.
Note 8: There will be times when I will have to curtail discussion or questions. The reasons for this are purely pedagogical, not political: We have a lot of material to cover and a limited amount of time in which to cover it.
1. October 4: Introduction
2. October 6: Introduction (II): Empires, Nations, and Nationalism. Gelvin, Chapter 1.
3. October 8: The Nationalization of Ottoman Palestine (I). Gelvin, 1433. James Reilly, “Peasantry of Late Ottoman Palestine,” Journal of Palestine Studies 40 (Summer 1981).
4. October 10: The Nationalization of Ottoman Palestine (II). Alexander Scholch, “Economic Development of Palestine, 18561882,” Journal of Palestine Studies X (Spring 1981).
5. October 13: Social Origins of Zionism: European Jewry in the Nineteenth Century (I). Gelvin, 3344.
6. October 15: Social Origins of Zionism: European Jewry in the Nineteenth Century (II). Alan R. Taylor, “Zionism and Jewish History,” Journal of Palestine Studies 2 (Winter 1972).
7. October 17: Theodor Herzl and the Origins of the Zionist Movement. Gelvin, 4656. Theodor Herzl, The Jewish State, 69157.
8. October 20: Zionist Colonization of Palestine (I). Gelvin, 5674. Ran Aaronsohn, “Baron Rothschild and the Initial Stage of Jewish Settlement in Palestine (18821890): A Different Type of Colonization?” Journal of Historical Geography 19 (1993).
9. October 22: Zionist Colonization of Palestine (II). Gershon Shafir, “Zionism and Colonialism: A Comparative Approach,” in Michael N. Barnett (ed.), Israel in Comparative Perspective.
10. October 24: Zionist Colonization of Palestine (III). David Ben Gurion, Recollections, 4562. Yitzhak Epstein,"The Hidden Question (August 1907),” in Paul MendesFlohr and Jehuda Reinharz, The Jew in the Modern World: A Documentary History.
11. October 27: World War I and Its Aftermath. Gelvin, Chapter 4.
12.October 29: Palestine under the Mandates System. Yousef Heikal, “Jaffa...As It Was,” Journal of Palestine Studies 52 (Summer 1984).
13. October 31: Origins of Palestinian Nationalism. Gelvin, Chapter 5. Muhammad Muslih, “Arab Politics and the Rise of Palestinian Nationalism,” Journal of Palestinian Studies 64 (Summer 1987).
14. November 3: Evolution of Palestinian Nationalism. Ted Swedenburg, “The Role of the Palestinian Peasantry in the Great Revolt (19361939),” in Albert Hourani, Philip Khoury, and Mary Wilson (eds.), The Modern Middle East. Ted Swedenburg, Memories of Revolt: The 19361939 Rebellion and the Palestinian National Past, 76137.
15. November 5: From the Great Revolt to VE Day and Beyond (I)
16. November 7: From the Great Revolt to VE Day and Beyond (II). Gelvin, Chapter 6.
17. November 10: 1948. Avi Shlaim, “The Debate about 1948,” International Journal of Middle East Studies 27 (August 1995). Benny Morris, “Operation Dani and the Palestinian Exodus from Lydda and Ramle in 1948,” The Middle East Journal 40 (Winter 1986). Rejae Busailah, “The Fall of Lydda, 1948: Impressions and Reminiscences,” Arab Studies Quarterly 3 (Spring 1981).
18. November 12: 1948 (II). Pamela Ann Smith, “The Palestinian Diaspora, 19481985,” Journal of Palestine Studies 59 (Spring 1986).
19. November 14: The ArabIsraeli Conflict: The Early Years. Gelvin, 16573. Myron J. Aronoff, “Myths, Symbols, and Rituals of the Emerging State,” in Laurence J. Silberstein (ed.), Perspectives New on Israeli History: The Early Years of theState.
20. November 17: 1967 and Its Diplomatic Aftermath. Gelvin, 17394.
21. November 19: The Problem of the Conquered Territories
NOVEMBER 21: NO CLASS
22. November 24: The Palestine Liberation Organization. Gelvin, 196212.
23. November 26: The First Intifada. Gelvin, 21221.
NOVEMBER 28: NO CLASS
24. December 1: Islamic Politics in Palestine. Gelvin, 22128.
25.December 3: The Rise and Fall of the Oslo Accords. James L. Gelvin, Revised Chapter 10 for 3rd Edition of The Israel Palestine Conflict: One Hundred Years of War.
26. December 5: It Ain’t Over ‘til It’s Over (I)
DECEMBER 8: SECOND PAPER DUE
27. December 8: It Ain’t Over ‘til It’s Over (II)
28. December 10: One State, Two State
29. December 12: Review
