LFU:online

Students will acquire deeper understanding of the complexities that accompany the Israeli-Arab Conflict throughout the past century.  Reading analyzing together primary and secondary sources will also grant deeper knowledge of the historiography of the Conflict, and of basic terms used by historians such as “Periodization”, “Turning Points” and “Memory”.

The Israeli-Arab conflict is one of the longest and bitterest violent conflicts in the world, and it draws wide attention from the international media. In this course we will concentrate on three turning points in the conflicts: the Israeli War of Independence (1948); the aftermath of the Six-Day War (1968); and the outbreak of the First Intifada (1988), which brought historians to critically reflect the role of the Israeli Army during the war of 1948. All of these moments in the history of the conflict can be seen as turning points, both within Israeli society and in the Israeli-Arab relations. 

Through critical reading of primary sources and research we will analyze together – using Israel as a case study – the role of national historiography in shaping and revising memory. We will also ask questions regarding the ability of historians to influence the societies in which they live. This course will also be an introduction to the interdisciplinary field of Israel Studies, which development stand in connection with political developments in the Middle East.

Regular participation in class and in the discussions; reading the assigned material; short presentation in class; submission of a short essay (2-3 pages) on a topic related to class. Although the readings and discussions will be in English, both presentations and final essays could be held/written in German.

 The list of required reading will be given at the beginning of the semester and most of the readings will be uploaded to OLAT. The readings will be modified to fit non-native speakers.

For students of the curriculum BA History (2009), a reduced workload applies.