The Oslo Syndrome: Delusions Of A People Under Siege - Hardcover

Levin, Kenneth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1575254174 ISBN 13: 9781575254173

Publisher: Smith & Kraus Global, 2005

Synopsis

While the subject of this study is specific-"the delusional thinking that underlay Israel's attempt to achieve peace with its neighbors through the so-called Oslo process"-the author's interests and conclusions are wide-ranging. Levin, a clinical instructor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and a commentator on Israeli politics, attempts to analyze why many Israeli Jews chose to believe in the peace negotiations of the early 1990s, even when Yasser Arafat was refusing calls to publicly renounce terrorism. Levin analyzes this through both historical and psychoanalytic lenses, mapping out how people who have lived under siege are likely to internalize the hatred they encounter and become "delusional" about their own self-interest. Levin also discusses European and American anti-Semitism and its effect on Jewish identity, from the mid-19th century to 1948, with some background material on the emergence of Zionism and the British Mandate. While the word "delusional" may be too strong, Levin's psychoanalytic arguments about the "corrosive impact of... besiegement" are fascinating and generally persuasive. But once stated, their truth becomes self-evident and their explanatory application over 600 pages of Jewish and Israeli history begins to feel thin. Levin's documentation of the Arab-Israeli conflicts of the past three decades is exhaustive, but while there is mention of the U.S. response to the 9/11 attacks, Levin might have spent more time exploring how his ideas affect other countries or political situations. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information

About this title

Product Description:

The Oslo Syndrome examines the Oslo debacle in which Israel sought to win peace through territorial and other concessions even as Palestinian leaders assured their people their objective was still Israel’s destruction. Psychiatrist and historian Kenneth Levin relates Oslo to the long history of Jews under siege, subjected to defamation, discrimination and other abuses, seeking to end the assaults through self-blame and accommodation to their oppressors.

About the Author:

KENNETH LEVIN earned an undergraduate degree in mathematics from the Univ. of Penn., a B.A./M.A. in English language and literature from Oxford University, his M.D. degree from Penn and a Ph.D. in history from Princeton University. He is a clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, has taught at various psychoanalytic training institutes in Boston and maintains a private practice in psychiatry. His previous books include Freud's Early Psychology of the Neuroses: A Historical Perspective and Unconscious Fantasy in Psychotherapy. Dr. Levin has written extensively on Israel and the Arab-Israeli conflict. His articles have appeared in The New Republic, The Boston Globe, The Washington Times, The Jerusalem Post and elsewhere. Recent articles published by Kenneth Levin may be found in NEW YORK JEWISH WEEK (February 25, 2005), in THE JEWISH PRESS (May 19, 2005) and in AM NEW YORK (June 1, 2005).

About this edition

• Publisher: Smith & Kraus Global
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1575254174
• ISBN 13: 9781575254173
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 599